ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Attorney-General whether any staff in the Law Officers' Departments have been (a) disciplined and (b) dismissed for inappropriate internet usage in the last 12 months.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has disciplined one member of staff for inappropriate internet usage in the last 12 months. No staff have been dismissed for inappropriate internet usage in the last 12 months.
	No staff in the remaining Law Officers' Departments have been disciplined or dismissed for inappropriate internet usage during this period.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Dairy Farming

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what effect the agreement of a voluntary code on contractual relationships between milk buyers and dairy farmers will have upon the provisions of his Groceries Code Adjudicator Bill.

Jo Swinson: The voluntary code of practice for the dairy sector is distinct from the Groceries Code, and will not change the provisions of the Groceries Code Adjudicator Bill. The Bill establishes an adjudicator to enforce and oversee the Groceries Code, which addresses contractual relationships between large supermarket retailers and their suppliers.

Engineers: Training

Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to assist with marine-based training for engineers aged between 16 and 24 years.

David Willetts: The Government's reforms of the skills system are helping to ensure that the system is demand-led, enabling businesses and individuals to take the lead and access the training they need. The Government are equipping them with funding, support and information, so that they can shape the skills system.
	The Government and industry published a Marine Industry Growth Strategy in September 2011. This work is being taken forward by the Marine Industries Leadership Council which the Minister for Business and Enterprise my right hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Michael Fallon) chairs jointly with Richard Sadler (CEO Lloyd's Register). As part of this work we have formed a Marine Sector Skills Group which works closely with Semta, the sector skills council for the advanced manufacturing and engineering sectors. This work is helping to engage a wide range of stakeholders, including a widening community of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the skills challenges and opportunities facing the sector.
	Apprenticeships have an important role to play, and engineering apprenticeships include pathways specifically designed for marine engineers. Frameworks cover a wide range of different job roles from operator to senior marine engineer and were designed in consultation with the sector. Final data for 2010/11 academic year show that there were 210 apprenticeship starts in the “Marine Industry” Framework by apprentices aged 16-24.
	A University Technology College specialising in marine engineering is planning to open in Plymouth in 2013. It will cater for students aged 14 to 19, offering technically oriented study in a school equipped to industrial standards.

European Patent Court

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will commission research to establish what effect the creation of the European Patent Court will have on economic growth in the UK.

Jo Swinson: The European (Unified) Patent Court is part of a package of proposed measures to establish a Unitary Patent system within Europe. The Government is working to ensure that the package delivers real benefits for UK businesses and the wider economy and the Prime Minister recently secured political agreement from heads of other participating member states to locate a vital part of the court in London. This will help to secure highly skilled jobs in the legal sector and associated professional services within the UK.
	We will continue to review and update our data on potential economic benefits to the UK as the detailed arrangements relating to court costs and funding arrangements evolve. There are no plans to commission external research on the Patent Court proposals.

Exports

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the total value of British exports to other Commonwealth countries in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The information is as follows:
	
		
			 UK exports to the Commonwealth 
			 £ billion 
			  Goods Services 
			 2007 19 18 
			 2008 22 20 
			 2009 20 22 
			 2010 24 23 
			 2011 29 25 
			 Sources: HM Revenue and Customs "Overseas Trade Statistics" (goods); Office for National Statistics "Pink Book" (services)—"Pink Book 2012" Table 9.5 was used for Australia, Canada, Cyprus, India, Malaysia, Malta, New Zealand, Pakistan, Singapore, and South Africa, which collectively account for over 80% of exports to the Commonwealth. For other Commonwealth countries, Table 9.13 in the Pink Book 2009 (2007 data), 2010 (2008 data), 2011 (2009 data) and 2012 (2010 and 2011 data) editions was used. 
		
	
	Due to differences in methodology, data are shown separately for goods and services.

Exports

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the total value of British exports to other member states of the EU in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The total value of British exports of goods and services to the EU-27 over the last five years was as follows:
	
		
			  £ billion 
			 2007 191 
			 2008 213 
			 2009 194 
			 2010 211 
			 2011 234 
			 Source: ONS Balance of Payments—Pink Book.

Exports

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the value of British exports to Russia in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The total value of British exports of goods and services to Russia over the last five years was as follows:
	
		
			  £ billion 
			 2007 4.9 
			 2008 6.5 
			 2009 4.3 
			 2010 5.3 
			 2011 7.3 
			 Source: ONS Balance of Payments—Pink Book.

Exports

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the value of British exports to China in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The total value of British exports of goods and services to China over the last five years was as follows:
	
		
			  £ billion 
			 2007 5.4 
			 2008 7.6 
			 2009 7.6 
			 2010 10.3 
			 2011 12.5 
			 Source: ONS Balance of Payments—Pink Book.

Exports

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the value of British exports to India in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The total value of British exports of goods and services to India over the last five years was as follows:
	
		
			  £ billion 
			 2007 4.7 
			 2008 5.9 
			 2009 4.7 
			 2010 6.2 
			 2011 8.3 
			 Source: ONS Balance of Payments—Pink Book.

Farepak

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the review into the lessons learnt from the Farepak disqualification proceedings will be made public in its entirety.

Jo Swinson: I intend to publish as much of the report of the review into lessons learnt as possible except for any aspects that may be subject to data protection and legal professional privilege issues.

Foreign Investment in UK: Barnsley

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many inward investment companies have located in Barnsley Central constituency in (a) the last 12 months and (b) each of the last 10 years.

Michael Fallon: UK Trade and Investment records the number of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects entering the UK each year.
	(a) there are no recorded FDI projects in the Barnsley Central constituency in the last 12 months;
	(b) The following table shows the number of FDI projects in Barnsley Central recorded for financial years 2003-04 to 2010-11. Information on projects before 2003 is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 FDI projects in Barnsley Central 
			  Projects 
			 2003-04 1 
			 2004-05 1 
			 2005-06 1 
			 2006-07 0 
			 2007-08 1 
			 2008-09 5 
			 2009-10 4 
			 2010-11 1 
			 Total 14 
			 Source: UKTI database

Innovation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the status is of the Government Innovation Growth Strategy; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: The Innovation and Research Strategy for Growth was published in December 2011. We are intending to report on the progress made in our annual innovation report due approximately a year after publication of the original report.

London Metropolitan University

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with UK universities on the harmonisation of fees or financial support in respect of overseas students being transferred from London Metropolitan University.

David Willetts: holding answer 11 September 2012
	A taskforce led by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) is now working with London Metropolitan University to support appropriately qualified genuine students to find another institution where they can continue their studies in the UK. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is represented at official level on that taskforce.
	With the support of the taskforce, London Metropolitan University is putting in place a clearing house from 17 September which will allow students to find comparable courses, with comparable fees, at other institutions locally. There are a number of London institutions with similar and in some cases lower fees to London Metropolitan University so it is not expected that fees will be a barrier to successful transfers.
	We have also created an emergency fund of up to £2 million to allow affected students to claim back fees for reapplying for visas and discretionary payments to cover, for example, lost deposits on accommodation due to having to move somewhere else to study.

Motor Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  if he will bring forward proposals to make it easier to recruit, train and retain factory managers in the automotive industry; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans he has to (a) maintain and (b) enhance the competitiveness of the UK automotive industry; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: BIS is working with the industry, through the Automotive Council, on strategies for sustainable growth of the sector and supply chain. The Council published a report on 10 August identifying at least £3 billion worth of new supply chain business opportunities for UK based companies. Major global investors including BMW, Jaguar Land Rover and Nissan have committed over £6 billion to the UK in the last two years.
	To strengthen the UK's competitive position with some of the most productive plants in Europe, BIS plans to provide support through its Regional Growth Fund and Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative for the industry on research and development (R&D), training grants, the safeguarding of engineering jobs and the recruitment of new workers. A new Talent Retention Solution programme has also been developed to provide an online resource to enable employers and individuals to share information in a confidential environment and preserve key skills in the automotive and other sectors across the UK.
	The industry intends to remain at the forefront of research and technology. This Government is committed to actively supporting the development, demonstration and use of low emission vehicles. For example, on 5 September I announced £9 million funding for the creation of a new ‘UK Energy Storage R&D Centre’ to support the advancement of electric and hybrid vehicle batteries. The centre will help the UK to capitalise on the growing electric and hybrid vehicle battery market, worth an estimated £250 million for the UK by 2020.

Overseas Students: Entry Clearances

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 30 April 2012, Official Report, columns 1086-7W, on overseas students, what assessment he has made of the implications of the revocation of the licence of London Metropolitan University to authorise visas on (a) the financial situation of London Metropolitan University and (b) the international reputation and success of the UK's further and higher education sector; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) is working closely with the university to help determine the potential financial impact of the licence revocation. This is a developing situation which is being closely monitored. The initial priority is to ensure that the interests of the university's students are protected.
	This Government does appreciate the important contribution that international students make to the UK's economy in terms of the economic benefits and wider enrichment students bring to the UK and genuine students will continue to be welcomed.
	The revocation of London Metropolitan University's licence reflects a problem with one university, not the whole sector. This situation has no bearing on the quality of education our institutions provide. Our universities are among the best in the world—the UK remains open for business and is a top class destination for international students.

Overseas Students: Entry Clearances

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support and assistance he has put in place to help educational institutions comply with the UK Border Agency guidelines; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: The Department has regular meetings with educational institutions to discuss a range of issues including compliance with visa regulations, and engages with the UK Border Agency to influence policy, outcomes and guidance in support of the UK's higher education sector. The Department supports the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA), a registered charity, to provide independent advice to assist foreign students, including on immigration matters, and works with the British Council, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), and Universities UK to promote the UK's international higher education ambitions to students looking to study in the UK.

Post Offices: Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent estimate he has made of the potential loss of income to post offices from the loss of the provision of Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency services; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: Post Office Ltd currently provides a number of services on behalf of the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), and received approximately £40 million of revenue for these services in 2011/12.
	DVLA is currently procuring a wide range of counter services, including those currently provided by Post Office Ltd. As I am sure you will appreciate, it would not be appropriate to comment further on the commercial details of a live procurement which is the responsibility of the DVLA.

Postal Services

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the ongoing additional costs to (a) Post Office Ltd and (b) Royal Mail as a result of the decoupling of the businesses;
	(2)  what (a) current and (b) projected costs are estimated to directly arise from the decoupling of Royal Mail and Post Office Ltd.

Michael Fallon: holding answer 11 September 2012
	The transfer of Post Office Ltd (POL) from being a subsidiary of Royal Mail Group Limited to a direct subsidiary of Royal Mail Holdings plc became effective from 1 April this year. This completes the operational separation of the two companies. The associated transfer costs were borne by POL and Royal Mail Group. I have therefore asked the chief executive officer of Royal Mail, Moya Greene, to respond to your questions direct and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Publications

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2012, Official Report, column 514W, on publications, how much his Department has spent on (a) circulars, (b) consultation documents and (c) publications since May 2010.

Jo Swinson: Costs for production of circulars, consultation documents and publications are not centrally held and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Regional Growth Fund

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of the Growth Fund is being handed to local newspapers to manage; and which local newspapers have won Regional Growth Fund bids.

Michael Fallon: No Regional Growth Fund (RGF) monies are being managed by local newspapers.
	From the first two bidding rounds, four bids from consortia where a local newspaper was one of the partners were successful, but in all of these cases the “accountable body” that actually holds the funding is one of the other partners (e.g. a university or a local authority). The role of the local newspaper in these programmes is to promote the local RGF programme to ensure that as many high quality bids as possible come forward.
	The following successful bids have had a local newspaper as one of its partners:
	1. Birmingham Post Business Growth Fund—a fund of last resort for SMEs and start-ups in the Birmingham, Solihull and Coventry—managed by Bournville College.
	2. The Liverpool Aspire Fund (Liverpool Echo)—a project to stimulate SME growth through media Advocacy—managed by Liverpool City Council.
	3. The South West Aspire Fund (Western Morning News)—a project to stimulate SME growth through media and higher education advocacy)—managed by University of Plymouth.
	4. Lets Grow Campaign SME Package (NCJ Media)—package bid to support 13 individual SME, predominantly manufacturing, projects all based in the North East of England Assisted Area—managed by 13 SMEs.

Research and Development Tax Credit

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on research and development tax credits and small businesses.

David Willetts: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), regularly meets the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), to discuss a range of business issues.

Science

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of the science budget has been allocated to life sciences in the last three years.

David Willetts: The allocations for 2011-12 and 2012-13 for science and research funding were made in December 2010, details of which are provided in the following publication:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/science/docs/a/10-1356-allocation-of-science-and-research-funding-2011-2015.pdf
	This also includes figures for 2010-11.
	The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills funds the UK Research Councils and Higher Education Funding Council for England to support science and research, with higher education equivalents funded by devolved Administrations. The Research Councils most associated with life sciences are the Medical Research Council (MRC) and Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). Funding allocated to them in the last three years is as follows:
	
		
			 £000 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Resource    
			 MRC 545.585 536,172 546,243 
			 BBSRC 362,341 370,306 359,471 
			     
			 Capital    
			 MRC 134.517 33,000 29,000 
			 BBSRC 66,480 38,000 29,700 
		
	
	MRC and BBSRC combined received 21.5% of science and research funding from 2010/11 to 2012/13. This is only part of the picture as other Research Councils fund the life sciences, examples include Natural Environment Research Council funding of £126 million in 2011/12 and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council funding of £117.3 million in 2010/11 in life sciences. In line with the Haldane Principle, prioritisation of an individual Research Councils' spending is not a decision for Ministers. In addition, it is up to universities to decide how to use Quality Related research funding.
	As well as the 2010 allocations, additional capital funding has since been allocated for major research infrastructure projects, many of which are of relevance to the life sciences. Capital projects, announced since 2010, include:
	£97.7 million to complete Diamond Phase III;
	£28.5 million for the Birth Cohort Facility;
	£21 million for four further instruments @ ISIS TS2 Phase II;
	£2.5 million for accelerator technology development at Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus;
	£26 million to develop the Norwich Research Park;
	£44 million to develop the Babraham Research Campus;
	£165.5 million in e-infrastructure and High Performance Computing;
	£80 million for the Institute for Animal Health;
	£6 million for a National Structural Therapeutics Facility;
	£75.1 million for the European Life-Science Infrastructure for Biological Information (ELIXIR) project.

CABINET OFFICE

British Nationals Abroad

Alun Cairns: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number of British citizens living outside the UK.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated September 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what estimate has been made of the number of British currently estimated to be living outside the UK. 120474
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) does not collect information regarding British citizens resident outside the UK. However, Eurostat publishes figures on population by citizenship for EU countries, these are available at:
	http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/population/data/database
	In 2006, the Institute for Public Policy Research produced a report on the British citizens living outside the UK ‘Brits abroad: mapping the scale and nature of British emigration’. This report can be accessed via the IPPR website on:
	http://ippr.typepad.com/brits_abroad/2006/12/brits_abroad_pu.html
	ONS produces estimates of Long-Term International Migration flows which are primarily based on the International Passenger Survey (IPS). Detailed information on countries of next residence of emigrants from the UK is available using the IPS component of these estimates. Published estimates on the Top 10 countries of next residence for emigrants who are British citizens can be found in our Series 3 tables (3.20b) on the ONS website at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/migration1/long-term-international-migration/november-2010/long-term-international-migration-from-international-passenger-survey--ips--tables-1991---latest.zip

Offences Against Children: Charities

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many charities registered in England and Wales have been (a) investigated or (b) the subject of a regulatory inquiry by the Charities Commission for allegations of child sexual abuse in the last three years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Charity Commission. I have asked the Commission's Head of Business Services to reply.
	Letter from Nick Allaway, dated 12 September 2012
	I have been asked to respond to your written Parliamentary Question regarding how many charities registered in England and Wales have been (a) investigated or (b) the subject of a regulatory inquiry by the Charity Commission for allegations of child sexual abuse in the last three years.
	Information about our investigations is published annually in our Back on Track publication, on our website. The Commission's role is ensuring trustees comply with their legal duties and responsibilities, including making sure trustees take appropriate steps to protect their charity and its beneficiaries from harm. The Commission is not responsible for safeguarding matters or dealing with incidents of actual abuse and we do not administer the legislation on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults, as explained in our Safeguarding Strategy. All suspected criminal activity is passed to the police.
	In 2010-11, there were 57 investigations into charities where issues concerned vulnerable beneficiaries, of which 3 were statutory inquiries.
	In 2009-10, there were 25 investigations into charities where issues concerned vulnerable beneficiaries, of which 3 were statutory inquiries.
	In 2008-09, there were 38 investigations into charities where issues concerned vulnerable beneficiaries, of which 4 were statutory inquiries.
	Please note that “vulnerable beneficiaries” includes vulnerable adults and the elderly as well as children, and can relate to other forms of abuse or complaints as well as sexual abuse. The number of cases within each year relating specifically to child sexual abuse will vary, but form only part of the figures above, but it is not possible to specifically break this down.
	I hope this information is helpful.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Audit Commission

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the monetary value was of the (a) basic pay including responsibility allowances, (b) bonus, (c) employer pension contribution, (d) hotel costs in London, (e) travel expenses, (f) hospitality expenses, (g) standard class return rail ticket each week to and from London and (h) other benefits in kind for the chief executive of the Audit Commission in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 5 September 2012
	This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission and I have asked the Controller of Audit at the Audit Commission to write to my hon. Friend direct.
	I would add that the programme to end routine inspection and assessment, disband the Audit Commission and introduce a new local audit framework will save £650 million over the next five years.
	Letter from Marcine Waterman, dated 13 September 2012
	Your Parliamentary Question has been passed to me to reply. I have extracted the information requested from the audited remuneration report included in the Audit Commission's annual report and accounts for 2011/12 laid before Parliament on 4 July 2012. I have summarised the information requested in the following table.
	
		
			 £ 
			 Item 2010-11 2011-12 
			 (a) Basic pay including responsibility allowance 183,000 182,000 
			 (b) Bonus — — 
			 (c) Employee's and employer's pension contributions 44,000 44,000 
			 (d) Hotel costs in London 17,140 11,506 
			 (e) Other travel expenses 307 3,202 
			 (f) Hospitality expenses — — 
			 (g) Standard rail costs 8,438 6,786 
			 (h) Other benefits in kind 0 0 
			 (i) Transport allowance 4,070 4,070 
			 Total 256,955 251,564 
		
	
	On (a), for both years, staff contribute to the Audit Commission Pension Scheme through a salary sacrifice scheme called SMARTpensions. This means that basic salaries are reduced in lieu of an increased employer contribution to the Pension Scheme. For 2010/11, the Chief Executive's salary was reduced by £13k. For 2011/12, the reduction was £14k. These amounts are included in the pension contribution figures, but have been removed from the basic salary figures.
	The commission also paid £27,428 tax and NI in 2011/12 (2010/11 £32,512) for the Chief Executive's travel and subsistence costs.
	The Chief Executive and Managing Directors are eligible for a lease car or a transport allowance of £4,070 (shown as (i) in the table). The Chief Executive opted for the transport allowance in 2010/11 and 2011/12.

Audit Commission

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he had made of the costs to the National Audit Office of preparing the code of practice to be followed by auditors of public bodies following the abolition of the Audit Commission.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 6 September 2012
	The programme to end routine inspection and assessment, disband the Audit Commission and introduce a new local audit framework will save £650 million over the next five years.
	The Government considers that the regulatory costs in the new framework will be no greater than those present in the current Audit Commission framework. The impact assessment published alongside the draft Local Audit Bill estimates that the regulatory costs in the current audit framework are approximately £4 million, including the cost of preparing the code of audit practice. In the new audit framework, some of the costs of regulating the system will fall to the National Audit Office, with others falling to the Financial Reporting Council and recognised supervisory bodies. The impact assessment therefore assigns £2 million to the National Audit Office for their regulatory role, including the preparation of the code of audit practice. My Department is working with the National Audit Office to refine this estimate for the updated impact assessment, which will accompany the final Bill.

Correspondence

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average time taken was by his Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers in the last 12 months; and for what proportion of letters the time taken to send a response was longer than (a) one month, (b) six weeks, (c) two months, (d) three months and (e) six months in that period.

Brandon Lewis: The average time taken by the Department to reply to correspondence from hon. Members and Peers during this period was 11.7 working days.
	Between 1 September 2011 and 31 August 2012 the department received 9,407 letters from hon. Members and Peers. As at 6 September, the Department has responded to 9,173 of the letters received during this period. The following table sets out the length of time taken to respond.
	
		
			  Number 
			 Answered within one calendar month (1)8,545 
			 Answered between one calendar month and six weeks 332 
			 Answered between six weeks and two calendar months 170 
			 Answered between two calendar months and three calendar months 91 
			 Answered between three calendar months and six calendar months 30 
			 Answered between six calendar months and 12 calendar months 5 
			 (1) 93% answered within one calendar month. 
		
	
	The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members' and Peers' correspondence. The report for 2011 was published on 15 March 2012, Official Report, columns 31-33WS.

Council Tax

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the maximum amount which could be raised by changes to second home discounts and empty property discounts by each local authority; and on what calculations that assessment was based.

Brandon Lewis: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 12 September 2012, Official Report, column 246W, where the information was placed in the Library of the House.
	The estimated cost of the second homes discount uses data from DCLG's Local Authority Council Tax Base 2011 England returns, published at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/xls/203045312.xls
	to calculate the number of Band D equivalent second homes by discount rate band. This number is multiplied by the mid-point of the band (where applicable), the Band D council tax and the collection rate, as published in DCLG's 2012-13 council tax levels set by local authorities in England return (2012-13 CT Levels), published at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/xls/2141741.xls
	The sum of these costs of discount by discount rate band gives the total estimated cost.
	The estimated cost of council tax exemptions for vacant and unoccupied dwellings (the cost of exemption classes A, C and L) uses data from the Council Tax Base 2011 return to calculate the number of Band D equivalent non-student exemptions by local authority. This is multiplied by the Band D council tax and the collection rate, as published in the 2012-13 CT Levels return, to calculate the total cost of non-student exemptions for each local authority. The cost of non-student exemptions by exemption class is found by multiplying this cost by the number of dwellings in receipt of the exemption (published in the Council Tax Base 2011 return) and dividing by the number of non-student exemptions in the local authority. The published figures relate to exemption classes A, C and L.
	This Government is taking action to keep council tax down, confirmed there will be no council tax revaluation and helped freeze council tax for two years. By treating everyone equally and fairly and removing the special tax breaks for empty homes and second homes, councils have the potential to cut £20 a year off families' council tax bills.

Council Tax Benefits

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of council tax benefit subsidy reduction in each local authority area in the next financial year.

Brandon Lewis: The information requested has been placed in the Library of the House.
	From April 2013, our reforms will localise council tax support and give councils stronger incentives to support local firms, cut fraud, promote local enterprise and get people back into work. Spending on council tax benefit doubled under the last Administration and welfare reform is vital to tackle the budget deficit we have inherited.
	Council tax support allocations for local authorities in 2013-14 and methodology are published in the ‘Localising Support for Council Tax: Funding arrangements Consultation’ at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/2146644
	This sets out a possible approach for managing funding pressures, for illustrative purposes. For those authorities whose council tax support allocation is subject to an adjustment in order to manage a funding pressure, their allocation can be found on page 33 of the consultation. For all other authorities, council tax support allocations can be found in the spreadsheet that accompanies the consultation.
	Dividing an authority's council tax support allocation (prior to managing funding pressures) by 0.9 gives the council tax support allocation had a 10% reduction in funding not been introduced. The notional reduction in a local authority's council tax support is equal to the difference between this figure and their allocation after managing funding pressures.

Emergencies

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the role and responsibilities of his Department's resilience and emergencies division is; and what work is carried out in the division's offices in London, Leeds and Birmingham.

Brandon Lewis: The Resilience and Emergencies Division is responsible for the interface between national and local level in emergency planning and response and, in many cases, recovery as well. The Division works closely with the Civil Contingencies Secretariat in the Cabinet Office and other Government Departments with leads for aspects of resilience policy and emergency response, as well as the 38 local resilience forums in England.
	The Division has four key roles:
	1. Enable resilient localities:
	helping places to identify for themselves the risks they face, mitigate those risks, and manage the impact of risks that materialise, including through barrier busting with central Government Departments;
	2. Ensure preparedness for emergencies:
	supporting localities to understand the potential impact of different types of emergency, especially those having a multi-locality impact, facilitate the design of a response capability that strikes an appropriate balance between risk of the emergency materialising and its potential impact, and facilitating liaison between local responders and central Government;
	3. Discharge our responsibility as the lead Government Department for particular emergencies:
	identifying and mitigating the risks, threats and vulnerabilities within the Department's fields of responsibility, sustaining a capability to manage for Government the response to and recover from wide area and national emergencies, and taking responsibility for post-event inquiries and identification of lessons learned;
	4. Provide Government support when emergencies occur:
	operating for Government a 24/7 liaison officer service to local responders and providing a 24/7 information service on the impact of emergencies and their management. This role is defined in the Central Government's Concept of Operations, which sets out the UK arrangements for responding to and recovering from emergencies, irrespective of cause or location and requiring co-ordinated central Government action. The Division provides the link between central and local resilience functions in respect of planning for and responding to emergencies, as well as the recovery from particular types of emergency.

European Regional Development Fund

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of the total funding allocated under the European Regional Development Fund between 2007 and 2012 is currently contractually committed in (a) each English region and (b) England.

Brandon Lewis: Historically, the fund programme has been plagued by the legacy of poor administration and financial corrections that dates back to the 2000-06 programme administered under the last Government. By contrast, the coalition Government have overhauled the management of these schemes, bringing them in-house, and minimising the liabilities inherited from the last Administration.
	All English programmes for 2007-2013 met their 2011 spend targets, and the programmes are on course and on track, and exactly where we would expect to be at this point in the seven-year programme. Funds can be allocated until the end of 2013, and funds should be spent by 2015.
	Overall, an average of over 100%(1) of the 2007-13 English European Regional Development Fund allocation has been either contractually committed or is awaiting contracting, with match funding in place.
	The following table sets out the current rates of contractual commitment in each of the 2007-13 European Regional Development Fund programmes in England, and the total for England:
	
		
			 ERDF operational programme Total operational programme allocation  (£ million) Amount of ERDF contractually  committed (£ million) Proportion of ERDF allocation contractually  committed ( % ) Proportion of ERDF allocation contractually committed and awaiting contracting ( %) 
			 Cornwall (convergence) 357.21 309.02 86.5 112.9 
			 Regional competitiveness     
			 East midlands 228.44 142.58 62.4 75.2 
			 East of England 94.90 74.22 78.2 93.0 
			 London 158.24 114.89 72.6 92.8 
			 North-east 324.56 221.51 68.2 93.3 
			 North-west 625.90 489.90 78.3 93.7 
			 South-east 21.34 12.97 60.8 80.1 
			 South-west 99.58 65.26 65.5 126.2 
			 West midlands 341.02 217.49 63.8 91.4 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 455.10 295.71 65.0 132.4 
			      
			 Totals/average proportion committed 2,706.29 1,943.55 71.82 101.8 
			 (1) Some of the operational programmes have accepted projects in the pipeline totalling more than the allocation, on the basis that some will not come to fruition. This has been the case under previous programmes as well. 
		
	
	As outlined in the answer of 23 January 2012, Official Report, column 50W, during the 2000-06 programme, the benefits of European Regional Development Fund were put at risk by poor management under the last Government. Poor administration resulted in liabilities totalling £236 million on the 2000-06 programmes and a payment suspension by the European Commission on the 2007-13 European Regional Development Fund programmes.
	Since the management of these programmes was brought in to the Department in 2011 we have succeeded in reducing the 2000-06 liabilities to less than £50 million and the error rates during 2011 for the 2007-13 programmes to significantly below the European Commission's material threshold of 2%.
	On issues such as matched funding, I also refer the right hon. Member to the written evidence submitted by my Department to the recent Select Committee inquiry (HC 81), which can be found online at:
	www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmcomloc/81/81we07.htm

Family Intervention Projects

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many troubled families were helped by family intervention projects in each of the last five years in England and Wales.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 5 September 2012
	Families supported by family intervention projects over the last five years are not necessarily troubled families, which were defined for the purposes of the national Troubled Families programme in March 2012.

Fire Prevention

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the budget was of his Department for advertising for its Fire Kills campaign in 2011-12.

Brandon Lewis: The total budget for the Fire Kills campaign for 2011-12 was £1 million.
	The campaign's main message last year was to encourage people to test their smoke alarms when they changed their clocks to and from British Summer Time. Our research showed that one in seven people tested, and this successful result was probably reflected in the 12% reduction in accidental fire deaths in the home compared with the year before—from 213 to 187.

Fire Services

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the percentage change is in his Department's grant to each precepting fire and rescue authority between 2011-12 and 2012-13.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 6 September 2012
	Details of 2011-12 and 2012-13 Formula Grant and overall spending power for all local authorities are available on our website at:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1213/grant.htm
	Formula Grant changes for fire and rescue authorities are available at:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1213/chng.xls
	In terms of overall spending power combined shire fire and rescue authorities saw an increase of 0.2% between 2011-12 and 2012-13.

Housing Benefit

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has had with the National Landlords Association on changes to housing benefit regulations.

Mark Prisk: Details of Ministers' meetings with external organisations can be found online at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/corporate/transparencyingovernment/ministerialdata/

Local Government: Procurement

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was spent by local authorities in procuring goods, works and services in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: Local authority procurement expenditure in England in each of the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			  Procurement (£  million ) 
			 2006-07 51,868 
			 2007-08 54,594 
			 2008-09 57,536 
			 2009-10 61,907 
			 2010-11 61,520 
			 Source: Department for Communities and Local Government Revenue Outturn (RO) returns. 
		
	
	These updated procurement expenditure data have been calculated as the running expenses component of service expenditure net of administration recharges within the authority.
	It is clear that there is significant scope for major savings in local authority procurement from the £62 billion spent each year. By making these savings, we can enhance front-line services, save taxpayers' money and help to pay off the deficit. To encourage that, we are cutting red tape to open up procurement, especially to small and medium-sized firms. While it is up to a local area to decide from whom to procure, local authorities clearly have significant spending power, which should be used to help drive local growth.

Local Government: Procurement

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the Federation of Small Businesses report on local authority procurement practice; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps his Department has taken to encourage and improve best procurement practice by local authorities;
	(3)  what steps his Department has taken to encourage local authorities to measure and monitor the proportion of contracts being awarded to small firms in their area;
	(4)  what recent steps his Department has taken to encourage local government to make procurement opportunities accessible to small and medium-sized enterprises;
	(5)  what recent steps his Department has taken to reduce the barriers in accessing procurement opportunities faced by small and medium-sized enterprises.

Brandon Lewis: Procurement in local government is a matter for local discretion but the Government is committed to encouraging a more open and level playing field for small and medium enterprises and has taken steps to improve opportunities for them.
	Last year the Prime Minister launched a new, free-to-use, online Contracts Finder portal and simplified pre-qualification questionnaire to make it easier and cheaper for small and medium enterprises to bid for public sector opportunities. The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), has also made clear on several occasions that he expects pre-qualification questionnaires to be removed for contracts under the European threshold of £173,000.
	I welcome the Federation of Small Businesses' report on local government and procurement. One of its key recommendations was that local authorities should measure and monitor where their procurement spend goes and the impact it has. The Code of Recommended Practice for Local Authorities on Data Transparency encourages local authorities to publish copies of contracts and tenders and also expenditure over £500, (including costs, supplier and transaction information). By increasing transparency in local authority spending, citizens and others are now much better placed to hold their local authorities to account in this regard, including on the proportion of contracts being awarded to small firms in their area.
	To support better procurement and commissioning, the Government and the Local Government Association are also opening up access to high quality training products for local authority officers, starting with the Commissioning Academy.
	We will be undertaking steps to promote best practice, given the significant scope for major savings in local authority procurement from the £62 billion spent each year.

Members: Correspondence

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to answer the letter dated 6 July 2012 on asset transfer sent by the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent North and transferred to his Department for reply.

Don Foster: I replied to the hon. Member on 10 September.

Parks

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to create a body to assess the effect of reductions in Government spending on urban parks.

Brandon Lewis: We have no plans to create a new quango to oversee local government spending; we are reining in top-down inspection and micromanagement of local government, such as by abolishing the Audit Commission. Quangos divert resources away from frontline services, as evidenced by the fact that the abolition of the Audit Commission will save £650 million of taxpayers' money over the next five years.
	Instead, we are increasing local accountability of local government, such as through the new Transparency Code, and by opening up more council executive meetings to members of the (hyper-local) press and public. This will empower local people to scrutinise the spending decisions of local councils, and help councils identify wasteful spending to make sensible savings and support frontline services and community facilities.
	I would add that the National Planning Policy Framework has increased planning protection for community facilities. The new guidance asks local councils to consider the availability and viability of community facilities as part of the plan-making process and to develop policies to safeguard against their unnecessary loss.
	The framework has introduced a new designation to protect valued local green spaces, which has the potential to provide additional planning protection to parks, playing fields and other open green spaces.
	This is also complemented by the new community rights introduced by the Localism Act to allow for greater community ownership and management of important local assets.

Regional Resilience Forums

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the regional resilience forums in relation to level 1 incidents; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: The Department wrote to local resilience forums and responders in March 2011 to explain that Government supports a flexible, localist and risk based approach to cross-boundary working and relationship building rather than prescribing arrangements based on arbitrary regional boundaries.

Riots Communities and Victims Panel

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total cost to the public purse was of the Riots Community and Victims Panel and its report.

Brandon Lewis: Members of the Riots Community and Victims Panel served in a voluntary capacity to undertake this role and have been reimbursed for the travel and subsistence costs incurred in their role as panel members. Further costs include office supplies and services, the commissioning of research and the production and publication of the panel's reports. The final cost was £171,500.
	The panel were supported by a secretariat comprised of officials from my Department temporarily reassigned to the role, incurring no additional cost to the Department's agreed pay budget for the relevant period.

DEFENCE

Belize

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what training has taken place at British Army Training Support Unit Belize since July 2011; and if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of such training.

Andrew Robathan: Following the cessation of infantry training exercises on 15 July 2011, routine training activities in Belize have been temporarily suspended as planned. However, other training has and will continue to take place in Belize on a much reduced basis as required by units, for example in individual and collective tropical training techniques, of which three such company level infantry exercises have taken place since mid- July 2011.

Defence Equipment

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to make a decision on the Maritime Indirect Fire System; and what estimate he has made of the unit cost of such a system.

Philip Dunne: A decision on the Assessment Phase for the Maritime Indirect Fire System (MIFS) project is likely to be taken by the end of the year, but the main investment decision point for the whole Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme, of which MIFS is a constituent part, is not expected until the middle of the decade. Given the status of the project, I am withholding the information regarding unit cost of the MIFS system as its disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the SC-130J aircraft's suitability as a maritime patrol aircraft;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of C-295 aircraft's ability to collect and process (a) magnetic anomaly data, (b) bathymetric data and (c) specific sonar data collected from sonar buoys;
	(3)  what discussions he has had with European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company on the procurement of the C-295 maritime patrol aircraft;
	(4)  what assessment he has made of the C-295's suitability for anti-submarine warfare including the delivery of (a) stand-off weapons and (b) sonar buoys.

Philip Dunne: Aircraft such as the SC-130J and C-295 are not currently being actively considered as we have not defined our requirement for a future Maritime Patrol Aircraft capability. A decision on any future requirement will not be made until the strategic defence and security review in 2015.

Syria

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with (a) the US military and (b) other US authorities on military intervention in Syria using (i) USAF Lakenheath and (b) other US bases in the UK; and whether the UK must give permission for the bases to be used for such purposes.

Andrew Robathan: The United Kingdom continues to work with other countries to achieve a diplomatic solution to the situation in Syria. The Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), has not had any specific discussions with the US military or other US authorities on the use of USAF Lakenheath or other US bases in the UK for military intervention in Syria. He has, however, discussed the situation in Syria with US counterparts in the course of normal ministerial business.
	I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), on 3 September 2012, Official Report, column 53, in which he said that our objective remains an end to the violence and a transition to a more democratic and stable Syria. That is the only way to avoid protracted civil war, the collapse of the Syrian state, an even greater exodus of refugees, and further appalling loss of life. That is not just our view or the view of other western countries; it is the view of the Arab League and the vast majority of UN member states.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Emissions: Agriculture

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to reduce carbon emissions from farming.

David Heath: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
	DEFRA recognises the important role of soil management practices in maintaining soil organic carbon and soil organic matter to enhance soil productivity and function, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These practices are currently encouraged through the Cross Compliance Guidance on soil management and Soil Protection Review 2010 which all farmers must complete where they are subject to cross compliance.
	In addition, DEFRA is taking a number of steps to protect peatlands, which are an important store of carbon, including providing specific incentives for peatland restoration through agri-environment schemes.
	Emissions from livestock and agricultural soils of methane and nitrous oxide represent a loss of valuable carbon and nitrogen resources and reduce the efficiency of agricultural systems to produce food and feedstuffs for industry.
	The UK Government and the devolved Administrations have developed a joint research programme to improve the evidence on the on-farm practices which can reduce these emissions in a cost-effective way.
	In England, the UK Government is working in partnership with stakeholders, including the Greenhouse Gas Agriculture Industry Partnership, to disseminate the evidence and promote the uptake of efficient on-farm practices. The UK Government also has a number of incentive schemes in place for low carbon energy, which farm businesses may access.
	DEFRA is currently undertaking a review of our approach to reducing emissions of methane and nitrous oxide from agriculture in England, including progress made by industry and Government action in other relevant policy areas. The final conclusions from this review will be published this autumn.

Energy

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate his Department has made of the average tariff differentials between (a) pre-payment meters, (b) standard credit, (c) direct debit offline and (d) direct debit online.

John Hayes: In the June edition of Quarterly Energy Prices DECC published annual bills for 2011 for both electricity and gas based on fixed consumptions of 3,300 kWh/year and 18,000 kWh/year respectively. Bills are published for the three main payment methods.
	
		
			 £ 
			  Pre-payment meters Standard credit Direct debit 
			 Electricity 479 472 434 
			 Gas 743 749 697 
		
	
	The following table splits the direct debit data between offline and online tariffs.
	
		
			 £ 
			  Offline direct debit Online direct debit 
			 Electricity 438 419 
			 Gas 705 660

Energy

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of electricity price differentials (a) outside and (b) within suppliers' former monopoly regions.

John Hayes: DECC do not publish data by company. The following data taken from table 2.2.1 of Quarterly Energy Prices (QEP) June 2012 shows average bills by payment method split between home and non-home suppliers (bills are estimated based on fixed consumption of 3,300 kWh for electricity and 18,000 kWh for gas):
	
		
			 £ 
			  Home Non-Home 
			 Standard Credit 489 457 
			 Direct Debit 454 424 
			 Pre-Payment Meters 490 469 
		
	
	The range of bills/prices paid by payment type within a given region are published in table 2.2.3 of QEP for electricity and table 2.3.3 for gas. These tables show the maximum, average and minimum bill/price for selected cities which are taken as representative of a region.

Energy: Meters

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department took to encourage responses to its consultation on the consumer engagement strategy before the smart meter roll-out.

John Hayes: Ministers and officials in the Smart Metering Implementation Programme regularly meet stakeholders through formal working groups and in bilateral meetings to discuss their views on the. programme, including on the consumer engagement strategy and during the consultation took these opportunities to encourage responses. Workshops were also held with stakeholders while the strategy was out for consultation to discuss their views and encourage responses. We informed more than 100 stakeholder contacts of the publication of the strategy and publicised it through our website, including in my blog, a tweet and in a Press Notice. I also wrote to MPs, Lords and the chairs of relevant Select Committees to raise awareness.
	The consultation closed on 1 June and we received 55 responses. We are currently reviewing the strategy in light of these and will respond later this year.

Freedom of Information

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what role Ministers in his Department have in taking decisions on requests made to his Department under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

John Hayes: Decisions on requests under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act are handled in accordance with the provisions of the legislation with day-to-day responsibility for handling requests delegated to officials.

Nuclear Energy Agency

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from what sources funding is drawn for the Government's participation in and membership of the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development; what (a) financial and (b) in-kind support has been provided by each supporting company since May 2010; and on what dates.

John Hayes: Until the end of 2011, the Department of Energy and Climate Change funded the UK's participation in and membership of the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. For the 2012 calendar year, funding was drawn from the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, and the Department of Energy and Climate Change. For the next calendar year, funding will again be drawn from the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, with the remainder to be contributed by the Nuclear Industry Association on behalf of industry.

Nuclear Power

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what procedures he is putting in place to ensure maximum transparency in the setting of the strike price for new nuclear generation.

John Hayes: There will be full transparency over the terms of any investment instruments or Contracts for Difference offered to developers of low carbon electricity generating projects, including new nuclear generation.
	The Government is currently considering its response to the recommendations for additional measures contained in the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee's report on pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Energy Bill, and will provide further details in its response to that report.

Nuclear Risk Insurers

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what (a) hospitality and (b) sponsorship Ministers and officials in his Department have received from Nuclear Risk Insurers Ltd since May 2010.

John Hayes: No Ministers in the Department have received hospitality or sponsorship from Nuclear Risk Insurers Ltd (NRI) since May 2010.
	Two officials attended the International Nuclear Pools Chairmen's Conference dinner on 18 June 2012 which was organised by NRI. No officials have been sponsored by NRI.

Procurement

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the name is of each company with which his Department has a contract; what the monetary value of each such contract is; and what is provided to his Department under the terms of the contract.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has devolved procurement and contract management to its divisions with all contract requirements being managed independently. The procurement function is an advisory service being provided by the centre. The information requested is currently unavailable.
	The procurement section is currently working to provide a central contracts register. Contracts of the Department are published on the Cabinet Office website which can be found at
	www.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk

Procurement

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's policy is on taking into account when assessing tenders submitted for departmental contracts the (a) apprenticeship schemes, (b) policies on employment of paid interns and (c) policies of payment of at least the living wage of each bidding company.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change policy for all tenders issued is to comply with the Government Procurement Service best practice guidance.
	Procurement staff seek opportunities to promote skills training, qualifications and apprenticeships in contracts wherever appropriate.
	The Department's standard terms and conditions contain clauses within contracts to ensure suppliers provide the services in accordance with good industry practice and legal requirements. Should a breach of these conditions occur, the Department has the ultimate option to terminate the contract.

Public Expenditure

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department has spent on soft furnishings, plants, artwork and other office improvements since May 2010; and what items were purchased.

Gregory Barker: DECC has not spent anything on soft furnishing, plants or artwork since May 2010. A number of other office improvements have been carried out over the period, primarily to redecorate after wear and tear or to increase the capacity and efficiency of the estate. These are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Item Cost (£) (ex VAT) 
			 Re-painting of 5(th) floor at 3 Whitehall Place 3,740 
			 Re-decoration of basement of 3 Whitehall Place after flooding 4,182 
			 Re-painting of lower-ground floor, ground floor and stairwells at 3 Whitehall Place, including new flooring in coffee/meeting area 39,801 
			 Re-carpeting of lower-ground and ground floors of 3 Whitehall Place 14,718 
			 Full re-decoration of 55 Whitehall before occupation by DECC 90,949 
			 Capacity increase of meeting room at 55 Whitehall 8,367 
			 Installation of hot-desk area at 55 Whitehall 15,145 
			 Installation of coffee/meeting area at 55 Whitehall 8,931 
			 Capacity increase of meeting room at 3 Whitehall Place 4,627 
			 Installation of new office space on ground floor of 3 Whitehall Place 8,566 
			 Installation of new shower rooms at 3 Whitehall Place and 55 Whitehall to provide increased capacity for cyclists 86,773 
			 Total 285,799

Renewable Energy

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funds his Department spent on energy subsidies for (a) wind, (b) solar and (c) hydro-electric power in each financial year since 2009-10 to date; and what estimate he has made of such spending in each financial year to 2014-15.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 11 September 2012
	The following tables provide figures for spend on energy subsidies in the financial years since 2009-10 to date, and an estimate of spend in each financial year to 2014-15.
	
		
			 Table 1: FITs support costs 
			 Nominal, £ million 
			  2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 
			 Solar PV 140 460 570 710 
			 Non-solar PV 20 40 70 100 
			 AD 5 14 26 41 
			 Hydro 5 10 17 24 
			 Micro CHP 0 0 0 0 
			 Wind 7 15 24 32 
			 Note: Non-solar PV total is rounded and does not match sum of components. Source: FITs 2B Government Response IA 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: RO support costs 
			 Nominal, £ million 
			  Actual spend Estimated expected spend 
			  2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 (1) 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 
			 Onshore wind 388 401 430 514 679 679 
			 Offshore wind 145 262 329 534 782 796 
			 Solar PV 0.6 0.1 0.1 1 2 2 
			 Hydro 113 97 86 79 90 84 
			 (1) 2011-12 figures are based on modelling, and may be different from actual figures which are expected to be available in December. Source: ROCs register, Poyry modelling and DECC calculations.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department has taken to implement the recommendations of the National Audit Office report, Central Government's implementation of the national Compact.

Gregory Barker: DECC has strong working relationships with many civil society organisations. These relationships respect the Compact principle of a strong, diverse and independent civil society. For example, DECC recently established an informal advisory Community Energy Contact Group to advise the Department on community energy issues.
	In public consultation exercises, DECC follows the Government Code of Practice on Consultation and if unable, provides a clear explanation as to why that was so.
	DECC has a nominated Civil Society Liaison Officer.

Training

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what (a) media and (b) public speaking training Ministers in his Department have received since May 2010; and what the (i) date and (ii) cost was of each session.

Gregory Barker: Since May 2010, one Minister has received media training. It took place on 31 July 2012 at a cost of £2,160.00 inclusive of VAT.

Warm Front Scheme: Coventry

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in (a) Coventry and (b) Coventry North East constituency who applied for help through the Warm Front scheme were turned down in each of the last five years.

Gregory Barker: The number of households that applied to the scheme but did not meet the eligibility criteria for Warm Front assistance in the Coventry and Coventry North East constituencies in each of the last five years is set out in the following tables(1):
	
		
			 Coventry LA 
			  Applications not accepted 
			 2007-08 269 
			 2008-09 249 
			 2009-10 259 
			 2010-11 100 
			 2011-12 121 
			 Total 998 
		
	
	
		
			 Coventry  North East 
			  Applications not accepted 
			 2007-08 124 
			 2008-09 102 
			 2009-10 109 
			 2010-11 50 
			 2011-12 98 
			 Total 483 
			 (1 )Prior to scheme year 2011-12 applications not accepted are recorded as non-qualifying applications. Data for 2011-12 include applications that were not accepted at survey stage due to failing to meet the required benefit or SAP criteria.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Advisory Committee on Pesticides

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will publish full details of the background, expertise, previous and current employment, and commercial interest, of all members of Advisory Committee on Pesticides.

Richard Benyon: Full details of the members of the Advisory Committee on Pesticides (ACP) are published in line with the provisions of the code of practice for scientific advisory committees. These details can be found on the ACP pages of the following website:
	www.pesticides.gov.uk
	All members declare interests in line with the code of practice both on an annual basis (these are published in the ACP annual report), and at the start of discussion of each item during meetings. Interests of members joining the committee in 2012 will be published in the annual report for 2012. Declarations of interest made at each meeting are published with the minutes and detailed records of those meetings.

Bees

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the statement in the letter of 23 July 2012 from Lord Taylor of Holbeach, reference MC 278501, on the Friends of the Earth report on Reviving British Bees, that the Government would respond to the report as soon as possible after the summer, when the Government plans to respond to the call for a national bee action plan; and if he will make a statement.

David Heath: We are continuing to consider the detailed recommendations in the Friends of the Earth report, alongside a range of other evidence on the state of bees and other pollinators. We hope to be able to be in a position to respond in detail to Friends of the Earth shortly.

National Income

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what definition of gross domestic product-plus his Department uses.

Richard Benyon: GDP+ is a proposal to encourage countries to move away from using gross domestic product (GDP) as the sole indicator of progress, by taking account of the full range of factors which contribute to economic activity and societal well-being (for example, social exclusion and non-market goods and services such as those provided by the environment). The precise measures have yet to be defined.
	Within the UK, we are building on the commitment in the Natural Environment White Paper to take the value of natural capital into account in our economic thinking. We are doing this by working with the Office for National Statistics on measuring well-being and on including natural capital within our National Accounts.
	We are also working with the European Commission to take forward the ‘beyond GDP’ agenda and on measures of resource efficiency as part of the Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe. DEFRA and the Deputy Prime Minister promoted the concept of GDP+ in the run-up to the Rio+20 Earth Summit. At the conference, the participating countries requested the UN Statistical Commission to launch a programme of work, which the UK will be engaging with.

Scallops

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science project to obtain scallop data for modelling recruitment and management has made; what funding has been made available for this project; and how much has been spent so far.

Richard Benyon: This five-year project, due to report shortly, will provide DEFRA with a clearer understanding of scallop larvae settlement in the English channel. This information will identify important juvenile scallop grounds, and will help meet our commitments under the marine strategy framework directive. It will also inform the management of these grounds to achieve wider stock benefits.
	The project has been allocated funding of £742,064, of which £683,799 has been spent so far.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department has taken to implement the recommendations made by the National Audit Office in its report, Central Government's implementation of the national Compact.

Richard Benyon: We have discussed the Department's approach to Compact implementation with DEFRA's Civil Society Advisory Board (CSAB) and we are now working with the Board on a range of ways in which DEFRA can work more effectively with civil society. The Board's input will underpin our future implementation of the Compact, including consideration of the National Audit Office's recommendations.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Al Shabaab

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the activities of Al Shabaab in East African countries.

Mark Simmonds: Despite Al Shabaab's withdrawal from Mogadishu in August 2011 and other significant locations, they continue to pose a threat to the people of Somalia, as demonstrated by the bomb attacks in Mogadishu on 12 September. They also continue to pose a threat to regional partners and UK interests in the region, and have issued public threats against Kenya because of its military intervention in Somalia.

Buildings

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the name and address is of each building owned by his Department; and what the estimated book value is of each such building.

David Lidington: The following table details all owned offices in the UK and overseas. Residential accommodation is not included as there is a security risk to our staff associated with releasing such information into the public domain.
	The total book value of our owned properties is £2.1 billion. Individual valuations are not provided as this information is commercially sensitive.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Estate is a platform for delivering the FCO’s main priorities of security, prosperity and support for British nationals overseas. Within the Diplomatic Excellence programme, we will deliver an estate that is flexible, safe and secure, low cost and good value for money, modern, functional, smaller, sustainable and, increasingly, a platform for all of the Government.
	
		
			 Country name Post name Address line 1 Address line 2 Address line 3 Address line 4 
			 Angola Luanda BE Office. 4 Rua Diogo Cao 4 Rua Diogo Cao (Caixa Postal 1244) Luanda 
			 Angola Luanda New Visa Office. 4 Rua Diogo Cao Caixa Postal 1244 Luanda  
			 Angola Luanda New Commercial Office. 4 Rua Diogo Cao Esplanade of San Miguel Luanda  
			 Botswana Gaborone British High Commission Plot 4712 1085 & 1838 Central Mall Gaborone 
			 Ethiopia Addis Ababa British Embassy Fikre Mariam Abatechan Street PO Box 858 Addis Ababa 
			 Ethiopia Addis Ababa Tukuls Fikre Mariam Abatechan Street PO Box 858 Addis Ababa 
			 Ethiopia Addis Ababa Commercial and Information Office Fikre Mariam Abatechan Street PO Box 858 Addis Ababa 
			 Ethiopia Addis Ababa FCO Management Office (part) Fikre Mariam Abatechan Street PO Box 858 Addis Ababa 
			 Ethiopia Addis Ababa Offices Fikre Mariam Abatechan Street PO Box 858 Addis Ababa 
			 Ghana Accra British High Commission Plot 27, Osu Link (PO Box 296) off Gamel Abdul Nasser Avenue Accra 
			 Ghana Accra Visa & Consular Offices Gamel Abdul Nasser Avenue Osu Accra 
			 Gambia Banjul British High Commission Ogden House, 48, Atlantic Road Fajara (PO Box 507) Banjul 
			 Gambia Banjul BHC Visa Section Bray House, 48, Atlantic Road Fajara (PO Box 507) Banjul 
			 Gambia Banjul Two Offices & Store British High Commission Compound 48-52 Atlantic Road Fajara Banjul 
			 Gambia Banjul     
			 Kenya Nairobi British High Commission Plots 109/110 87 Upper and Lower Hills Road Nairobi 
			 Mauritius Port Louis British High Commission Les Cascades Building, 7th Floor 33 Bis Edith Cavell Street Port Louis 
			 Malawi Lilongwe High Commission Offices Plot 40/3 Lilongwe  
			 Mozambique Maputo British High Commission Avenida Vladimir I Lenine 310 Caixa Postal 55 Maputo, Mozambique 
		
	
	
		
			 Nigeria Lagos British Deputy High Commission 11 Walter Carrington Crescent Victoria Island Lagos 
			 Nigeria Lagos 11 Walter Carrington Crescent Victoria Island Lagos  
			 Namibia Windhoek British High Commission 116 Robert Mugabe Avenue Windhoek Namibia 
			 Rwanda Kigali Parcelle No 1B1, Boulevard de l'Umuganda, Kacyira-Sud, Kigali Rwanda. 
			 South Africa Pretoria British High Commission 255 Hill Street Arcadia 0002 Pretoria 
			 South Africa Pretoria BHC Projects Office Hill Street/Schoeman Street BHC Compound Pretoria 
			 Republic of Sudan Khartoum British Embassy Off Baladiya Street Khartoum 1 Sudan 
			 Senegal Dakar British Embassy 20 Rue du Docteur Guillet Dakar  
			 Sierra Leone Freetown British High Commission Spur Road Freetown  
			 Sierra Leone Freetown BHC Clinic Spur Road Lower Compound Freetown  
			 Sierra Leone Freetown French Office. Annex 2 BHC Compound Spur Road Freetown 
			 Sierra Leone Freetown     
			 Tanzania Dar Es Salaam 3rd Floor & part Ground Floor Umoja House Garden Avenue Dar Es Salaam. PO Box 9200. 
			 Tanzania Dar Es Salaam 5th Floor & part Ground Floor Umoja House Garden Avenue Dar Es Salaam. PO Box 9200. 
			 Uganda Kampala BHC Office. BHC Compound PLOT 4 Windsor Loop Road Kitante Kampala 
			 Uganda Kampala Cons / Visa office BHC Compound. Plot 4 Windsor Loop Road Kitante Kampala 
			 Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa British Embassy Avenue du Roi Baudouin, 83 Gombe Kinshasa 
			 Zimbabwe Harare New British High Commission Office 3 Norfolk Road Mount Pleasant Harare 
			 Zimbabwe Harare Harare: Visa/Consular Office BHC Compound 3 Norfolk Road Harare 
			 Zambia Lusaka 5210 Independence Avenue (PO Box 50050) 15101 Ridgeway Lusaka 
			 Argentina Buenos Aires British Embassy Dr. Luis Agote 2412/52 (1425) Buenos Aires  
			 Barbados Bridgetown Lower Collymore Rock St Michael Bridgetown  
			 Bolivia La Paz British Embassy Avenida Arce 2732 La Paz  
			 Brazil Brasilia British Embassy Avenida das Nacoes,Setor de Embaixadas Sul Ses Quadra 801, Conjunto K CEP 70.408-900, Brasilia-DF 
			 Belize Belmopan British High Commission Embassy Square No. 772, Block 20, PO Box 91 Belmopan 
			 Canada Ottawa British High Commission 80 Elgin Street Ottawa Ontario K1P 5K7 
			 Canada Ottawa 2nd Floor 80 Elgin Street   
			 Chile Santiago British Embassy 3rd/4/5th Floors, Avenida El Bosque 0125 Casilla 72-D or Casilla 16552 Santiago 
			 Chile Santiago British Commercial Section 2nd Floor, Avenida El Bosque Norte 0125 Casilla 72-D or Casilla 16552 Las Condes, Santiago 
			 Ecuador Quito Citiplaza Building Naciones Unidas Ave and Republica de El Salvador 14th floor,PO Box 17-17-830,Quito 
			 El Salvador San Salvador 14th Floor Torre Futura Edificio World Trade Center San Salvador San Salvador El Salvador 
			 Guatemala Guatemala City BE Office Part 11th Floor 16 Calle 0-55, Zona 10, Edificio Torre International, Nivel 11, Guatemala City 
			 Guatemala Guatemala City BE Office Part of the 12th Floor, 16 Calle 0-55, Zona 10, Edificio Torre Internacional, Nivel 12, Office 1202, Guatemala City 
			 Guyana Georgetown British High Commission 44 Main Street Georgetown  
			 Jamaica Kingston British High Commission Trafalgar House 28 Trafalgar Road Kingston 10 
		
	
	
		
			 Jamaica Kingston British Council Offices, BHC Compound Trafalgar Park 28 Trafalgar Road Kingston 
			 Jamaica Kingston TWS Office/Works Complex BHC Compound Kingston  
			 Mexico Mexico City British Embassy Rio Lerma 71 Col Cuauhtemoc 06500, Mexico City 
			 Mexico Mexico City Management Section Rio Usumacinta 30 Col Cuauhtemoc 06500, Mexico City 
			 Mexico Mexico City British Consular Section 26 Rio Uscamacinta,  Mexico City. 
			 Mexico Mexico City New Office. Rio Usumacinta 24   Mexico City 
			 Peru Lima 22/23 Floors Torre Parque Mar Building Av. Jose Larco No 1301, Miraflores. Lima  
			 Panama Panama City British Embassy MMG Tower, Calle 53, Floors 4 & 5 Box 0816-07946 Panama City 
			 Uruguay Montevideo British Embassy Calle Marco Bruto 1073 Pocitos, (PO Box 16024) 11300 Montevideo 
			 United States Washington British Embassy. 3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington DC 
			 United States Washington Old Chancery - Formerly Apartment no. 1 3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington DC 
			 United States Washington Old Chancery - Formerly Apartment no. 2 3100 Massechusetts Avenue NW Washington DC 
			 United States Washington Consular and Visa Sections 19 Observatory Circle NW Washington DC 
			 Venezuela Caracas Av. Eugenio Mendoza con Calle Jose Angel Lamas 11th Floor, La Castellana Carcas 
			 Venezuela Caracas Av. Eugenio Mendoza con, Calle Jose Angel Lamas, 12th Floor (Office 12-C and 12-D), La Castellana  
			 Australia Canberra BHC Office Commonwealth Avenue Yarralumla ACT 2600.   
			 Burma Rangoon (Yangon) British Embassy 80 Strand Road Box No. 638 Rangoon (Yangon) 
			 Fiji Suva British Embassy 47 Gladstone Road SUVA  
			 Hong Kong Hong Kong British Consulate General Colvin House Site, Inland Lot No 8675 No.1, Supreme Court Road Central Hong Kong (PO Box 528) 
			 Hong Kong Hong Kong British Council Building No.3, Supreme Court Road Central, Hong Kong  
			 Indonesia Jakarta British Embassy Jalan M.H Thamrin 75 Jakarta 10310 
			 Japan Tokyo British Embassy - Chancery Office 1 Ichiban-cho Chiyoda-ku Tokyo 
			 Japan Tokyo British Commercial & Consular Sections 1 Ichiban-cho Chiyoda-ku Tokyo 
			 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur BHC Office 185, Jalan Ampang (Lot 258, Section 89A, Town of KL) 50450 Kuala Lumpur 
			 New Zealand Wellington British High Commission 44 Hill Street Wellington 1  
			 Philippines Manila BE Office 120 Upper McKinley Road McKinley Town Centre. Fort Bonifacio Taguig City. Manila 
			 Papua New Guinea Port Moresby BHC Office (Allotment 2 & 3), Section 411 Kiroki Street, Waigani NDC 131 Port Moresby 
			 Singapore Singapore British High Commission Tanglin Road Singapore  
			 Singapore Singapore Pavilion Offices Tanglin Road Singapore  
			 Korea Seoul British Embassy Office Taepyeongno 40 4 Jeong-dong. Jung-gu Seoul. South Korea 
			 Solomon Islands Honiara BHC Office Tanuli Ridge Honiara  
			 Thailand Bangkok Chancery Building 2. 14 Wireless Road Bangkok  
			 Thailand Bangkok British Embassy Consular Offices Building 4. 14 Wireless Road Bangkok 10330 
			 Thailand Bangkok Adjoining Visa Office BE Compound Wireless Road Bangkok 
			 Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City BC Office 25 Le Duan District 1 Ho Chi Minh City 
		
	
	
		
			 Georgia Tbilisi BE Office 51 Krtsanisi Street. Tbilisi 0114  
			 Armenia Yerevan 34 Bhagramian Avenue 34 Bhagramian Avenue Yerevan  
			 Russian Federation Moscow British Embassy Smolenskaya Naberezhnaya Moscow  
			 Russian Federation Moscow EMS Office Smolenskaya Smolenskaya Naberezhnaya Moscow  
			 Tajikistan Dushanbe Mirza Tursunzade 65 Dushanbe  Tajikistan 
			 Austria Vienna British Embassy Jaurésgasse 12 1030 Vienna  
			 Austria Vienna Consular Office Jauresgasse 10 1030 Vienna 
			 Belgium Brussels UKDel NATO. Bld Leopold III Evere 1140 Brussels Belgium 
			 Belgium Brussels UKREP Ministers Offices "Justius Lipsius" 175 Rue de la Loi Brussels 
			 Cyprus Nicosia BHC Office Alexander Pallis Street (PO Box 1978) Nicosia 
			 Cyprus Nicosia Office - 29 Shakespeare Avenue Nicosia   
			 Cyprus Nicosia Nicosia: Amenity Land    
			 Cyprus Nicosia BHC Commercial Office Alexander Pallis Street Nicosia  
			 Cyprus Nicosia BHC Consular Office Alexander Pallis Street Nicosia  
			 Cyprus Nicosia BHC Management Office Alexander Pallis Street Nicosia  
			 Cyprus Nicosia Visa Office. Shakespeare Avenue Nicosia   
			 Czech Republic Prague BE Office Thunovska 14 118000 Prague 1  
			 Denmark Copenhagen British Embassy Kastelsvej 38 DK-2100 Copenhagen 0  
			 Denmark Copenhagen UKTI Office Kastelsvej 38 DK-2100 Copenhagen 0  
			 Denmark Copenhagen British Embassy Management Section and Consular Visa Office Kastelsvej 36 DK-2100 Copenhagen 0  
			 Denmark Copenhagen BE Chancery Office BE Kastelsvej 40 DK 2100 Copenhagen 
			 Irish Republic Dublin British Embassy 29 Merrion Road Ballsbridge Dublin 
			 Estonia Tallinn 6 & 6a Wismari Tallinn   
			 Finland Helsinki British Embassy Itainen Puistotie 17 00140 Helsinki  
			 France Marseilles British Consulate-General Prado Castellano Building 24-26 Avenue Du Prado 13006 Marseilles 
			 France Paris British Embassy 35 Rue du Faubourg St. Honore 75383 Paris Cedex 08  
			 France Paris British Consulate-General 16 Rue d'Anjou 75008 Paris  
			 Germany Berlin Wihelmstrasse 70 10117 Berlin  
			 Greece Athens British Embassy 1 Ploutarchou Street Athens  
			 Italy Rome British Embassy Office Via XX Settembre 80a Porta Pia 00187 Rome 
			 Italy Rome Office 2 Stable Block Porta Pia Office Compound Rome  
			 Latvia Riga British Embassy 5, Alunana Iela Street Riga LV 1010  
			 Lithuania Vilnius British Embassy Ground Floor & first floor Antakalino Gatve 2 Vilnius 
			 Lithuania Vilnius Commercial/Know How Fund Depts Antakalino Gatve 2 Vilnius  
			 Netherlands Amsterdam British Consulate-General Koningslaan 44 1075 AE Amsterdam 
			 Netherlands The Hague British Embassy 10 Lange Voorhout 2514 ED The Hague 
			 Norway Oslo British Embassy Thomas Heftyesgate 8 0244 Oslo  
			 Poland Warsaw British Embassy Ulica Kawalerii 12 Warsaw  
			 Portugal Lisbon British Embassy Rua de Sao Bernardo 33A-33D Santa Isabel 1200 Lisbon 
			 Portugal Portimao British Consulate Largo Francisco A Mauricio 7-10 1st Floor, Flats D1 and E1 8500 Portimao 
			 Portugal Portimao New BC Office Fabrica Complex Avenida Guarane Portimao 
			 Romania Bucharest 24 Strada Jules Michelet Bucharest   
			 Romania Bucharest VISA OFFICE, 24 Strada Jules Michelet Bucharest Romania  
		
	
	
		
			 Romania Bucharest First Floor, Annexe Building Str.Jules Michelet Nr.24 Bucharest  
			 Slovakia Bratislava British Embassy Panska 16 81101 Bratislava  
			 Spain Alicante British Consulate Plaza Calvo Sotelo, 1 & 2, 1st Floor Apartado De Correos 03001 Alicante 
			 Spain Alicante 1&2 Plaza De Calvo Sotelo Alicante Spain  
			 Spain Bilbao British Consulate-General, 2-8 Alameda de Urquijo, 48008 Bilbao Alameda de Urquijo Building 2, 8th Floor Bilbao 
			 Spain Ibiza Isidoro Macabich 45-1 Appt E    
			 Spain Las Palmas British Consulate 3rd Floor, Edificio Cataluna Corner Luis Morote 6/Calle Albaneda 87 35080 Las Palmas, (Gran Canaria) 
			 Spain Palma British Consulate Plaza Mayor 3D, 07002 Palma de Mallorca Balearic Islands 
			 Spain Palma New BC Office Orisba Edificio 4B Orisba   
			 Spain Barcelona British Consulate-General Edificio Torre de Barcelona, 13th Floor Avenida Diagonal 477-13 08036 Barcelona 
			 Switzerland Berne British Embassy Thunstrasse 50 3005 Berne  
			 Sweden Stockholm British Embassy Skarpogatan 6-8, (Box 27819) 115 93 Stockholm  
			 Turkey Ankara BE Office (upper compound) Sehit Ersan Caddesi 46/A Cankaya Ankara 
			 Turkey Antalya British Consulate Office No 6 324 Street Gursu. Konyaalti. Antalya 
			 Turkey Istanbul British Consulate-General, Pera House Mesrutiyet Caddesi No.34 Pera House Compound Istanbul 
			 Turkey Istanbul TWO complex Mesrutiyet Caddesi No.34 Pera House Compound Istanbul 
			 Turkey Istanbul New Visa/ Interview Office Pera House Compound   
			 Holy See Holy See VIA XX Settembre 80A Flat B Via XX Settembre 80A Porta Pia Rome 
			 Serbia Belgrade British Embassy Resavska 46 11000 Belgrade  
			 Serbia Belgrade Management Section Office British Embassy Generala Zdanova 44  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Office. Old Gatehouse Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Site Security Office Hanslope Park   
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Engineering Purchasing/Service Office Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park RMG/Training/Finance Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Park House Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Office DDM/Reprographics Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Fitness Centre/TUS Office Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park TSS/IS Building Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park ES/TG Office/Workshop Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park IS - Information Services Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park IS - Information Services Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park IS - Projects Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Hanslope Park : Acoustics/Microcircuits Acoustics/Microcircuits Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Hanslope Park : HMGCC Main Administration Office Main Administration Office Milton Keynes  
		
	
	
		
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Hanslope Park : HMGCC South East Block South East Block Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Hanslope Park : HMGCC Access Control Access Control Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Medical Welfare - Building 70 Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park RPD/RHS Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park HES/Support Group/IAU Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park IS/Information Services Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Site Maintenance Facility Hanslope Park Milton Keynes  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Hanslope Park HMGCC New Office   
			 United Kingdom London King Charles Street (Main Building) London   
			 United Kingdom London Old Admiralty Building The Mall London  
			 United Kingdom Hanslope Park Hanslope Park: ICT Office Adjoining Bldg 70 Formerly Part of Car Park To West of Bldg 70 Hanslope Park Milton Keynes 
			 Algeria Algiers Old British Embassy 6 Avenue Souidani Boudjemaa Algiers  
			 Algeria Algiers 3 Rue Capitaine Hocine Slimane (ex Chemin Des Glycines) Hydra Algiers  
			 Bahrain Bahrain British Embassy 21 Government Avenue Manama 306 Bahrain 
			 Egypt Alexandria British Consulate-General 3 Mina Street Roushdy Alexandria 
			 Egypt Cairo Chancery Building British Embassy Compound Ahmed Ragheb Street, Garden City Cairo 
			 Egypt Cairo Visa Office British Embassy Compound Ahmed Ragheb Street, Garden City Cairo 
			 Iraq Baghdad BE Office. Sharia Haifa (Haifa Street) Al Salhya Karkh BAGHDAD 
			 Iran Tehran British Embassy Offices 143 Ferdowsi Avenue, Tehran  
			 Iran Tehran House S (Site) Ferdowsi Compound Tehran  
			 Israel Tel Aviv British Embassy 192, Hayarkon Street Tel Aviv 63405  
			 Jerusalem Jerusalem British Consulate General, 19 Nashashibi Street, Sheikh Jarrah Quarter, East Jerusalem. 
			 Jordan Amman British Embassy Office, Chancery Building, Damascus Street (Olive Grove Site) PO Box 87, Jebel Abdoun, Amman, Jordan. 
			 Jordan Amman New Visa Office Plot at Front, Embassy Compound Damascus St Amman 
			 Kuwait Kuwait British Embassy Offices The Old Building (Chancery) Ground Floor, Main Building Arabian Gulf Street. Kuwait City 
			 Kuwait Kuwait The Management Building Arabian Gulf Street Kuwait City  
			 Morocco Rabat British Embassy 28 Avenue S. A. R. Sidi Mohammed Souissi Rabat 
			 Oman Muscat British Embassy Jame'eat Al Duwaal Al Arabiyya Street Al Khuwair Muscat 
			 Qatar Doha New BE Office BE Compound West Bay Doha 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh British Embassy Diplomatic Quarter Riyadh  
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh TWS Office & Workshops British Embassy Compound Diplomatic Quarter Riyadh 
			 Tunisia Tunis BE Office, 'Salma', Berges Du Lac, TF 85357 (Parcel 153 of TF 74661) Tunis 
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi Office British Embassy Compound PO Box 248 Abu Dhabi 
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi British Embassy Compound PO Box 248 Abu Dhabi  
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi Visa Office BE Compound PO Box 248 Abu Dhabi 
		
	
	
		
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi RAFLO Office BE Compound Abu Dhabi  
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi CS HQ british Embassy Compound Abu Dhabi  
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi UKTI Offices British Embassy Compound PO Box 248 Abu Dhabi 
			 United Arab Emirates Dubai British Embassy Office, British Embassy Compound, Dubai, UAE. 
			 United Arab Emirates Dubai Conference Centre & BBG Office British Embassy Compound Dubai  
			 United Arab Emirates Dubai New RTC Office BE Compound Dubai  
			 Yemen Sanaa New BE Office 938 Dahir Humair St 5A Ring Road Sana'a 
			 Bangladesh Dhaka British High Commission UN Road (9-10 Dutabash Road) Baridhara  
			 Bangladesh Dhaka British High Commission UN Road (9-10 Dutabash Road) Baridhara  
			 India Mumbai BDHC Office Naman Chambers Plot C32 G Block. Bandra Kurla Complex Bandra East. Mumbai 
			 India Kolkata British Deputy High Commission Ho Chi Minh Sarani Kolkata 700 071  
			 India New Delhi Supply Solutions Office British High Commission Plot 3 Block 50C, Chanakyapuri New Delhi  
			 India New Delhi IPSO Office British High Commission Plot 3 Block 50C, Chanakyapuri New Delhi 
			 India New Delhi BHC Office Plot 3, Block 50C, Chanakyapuri New Delhi  
			 India New Delhi Immigration & Visa Office Plot 3, Block 50C, Chanakyapuri New Delhi  
			 India New Delhi ALO Office Plot 3, Block 50C, Chanakyapuri New Delhi  
			 India Chennai BDHC Office 20 Anderson Road Nunqambakkam Chennai 
			 Nepal Kathmandu British Embassy British Embassy Compound Plot No's 1,2,5 & 6, Lainchaur Kathmandu 
			 Nepal Kathmandu New Visa Office British Embassy Compound, Plot No's 1,2,5 & 6, Lainchaur Kathmandu  
			 Pakistan Karachi British Deputy High Commission, Acton House York Place Karachi  
			 Pakistan Karachi Visa Office Antrim House British Deputy High Commission Karachi  
			 Pakistan Islamabad British High Commission Diplomatic Enclave Ramna 5, (PO Box 1122) Islamabad 
			 Pakistan Islamabad Visa Office Building British High Commission Compound Diplomatic Enclave Islamabad 
			 Pakistan Islamabad Chancery Annex British High Commission Residential Compound Islamabad  
			 Pakistan Islamabad British High Commission Compound Diplomatic Enclave Ramna 5, PO Box 1122 Islamabad 
			 Sri Lanka Colombo British High Commission 190, Galle Road Kollupitiya, (PO Box 1433) Colombo 3 
			 Sri Lanka Colombo BHC Office Compound

Burma

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government is assisting the Government of Burma with technical and other assistance on repealing and replacing that country's 1982 citizenship law.

Hugo Swire: The Burmese Government have not initiated any action in regards to repealing or replacing its 1982 citizenship law.
	As I set out in the Westminster Hall Debate of 11 September 2012, Official Report, 20-24WH, on the treatment of Rohingya communities in Burma, the United Kingdom has long been one of the most active and vocal members of the international community in raising the issues affecting the Rohingya with the Burmese authorities and has consistently called for discrimination against the Rohingya to end and for their rights to be recognised.
	We continue to raise these concerns in international institutions such as the UN Human Rights Council, where in March of this year we strongly supported a resolution which made clear to the Burmese Government the urgent need to resolve the issue of nationality for the Rohingya community.
	We continue to urge the Burmese Government to respond to the international community's calls to address the issues affecting the Rohingya, including a permanent and inclusive solution to the issue of their citizenship.

Burma

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received that ethnic Rohingya are being forced out of the town of Sittwe in Burma.

Hugo Swire: We continue to receive reports from a range of sources that suggest that people from both Rohingya and ethnic Rakhine communities, though mainly Rohingya, were removed from Sittwe into temporary shelters in recent months.
	An official from our embassy in Rangoon visited Sittwe and Rakhine State as part of a government-organised tour for the diplomatic corps on 31 July/1 August and saw some of the aftermath of the violence in Sittwe. We understand that violence has mostly subsided though tensions remain high and that the response to the humanitarian situation is ongoing.
	We continue to monitor the situation in Rakhine State closely and press Burmese authorities to put in place a long-term solution to the problem which does not leave communities permanently displaced.

Burma

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of how many people have been internally displaced by conflict and human rights abuses in Burma since Thein Sein became President of that country.

Hugo Swire: The two most notable outbreaks of violence in Burma since President Thein Sein was inaugurated in April 2011 are the conflict in Kachin State which erupted in June of that year and the recent outbreak of inter-communal violence in Rakhine State. Human Rights Watch estimate that 75,000 people were displaced as a result of conflict in Kachin State and the UN estimates that 90,000 have been displaced in Rakhine State. Given the restricted access to the areas affected, and that displaced persons have often fled into bordering countries for safety, it is difficult to verify these numbers with certainty.
	We continue to call for unrestricted humanitarian access to all areas affected by conflict in Burma. The UK, through the Department for International Development's bilateral programme, is committed to assisting 155,000 people affected by conflict by 2014.

EU Justice and Home Affairs

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received on Protocol 36 of the Treaties of the European Union regarding the UK's ability to opt out in the field of Justice and Home Affairs; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: The Government is currently considering this issue and we will be listening carefully to the views of interested parties before taking a final decision. We have taken note of the interests of the European and Departmental Select Committees. We are committed to a vote in Parliament and we will consult with the Committees on the arrangements for that vote.

European Union

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the requirement for a referendum under the European Union Act 2011 would apply should the UK opt in to measures covered by Protocol 36 of the Treaties of the European Union.

David Lidington: The UK's decision on whether to continue to be bound by those measures covered by Article 10 of Protocol 36 does not involve the transfer of new powers to Brussels because it flows from the existing treaties and does not require any amendment to those treaties. This decision would not therefore trigger a referendum under the 2011 Act. However, the Government has committed to a debate and vote in both Houses on its decision.

India

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of India's response to the UN's Universal Periodic Review; what assessment he has made of the level of respect for human rights in India; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: We welcome the steps India has taken since the last Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and are encouraged by their engagement with the UN process as well as consultations with civil society leading up to the review in May. We look forward to the Indian Government's response to all the recommendations made during its UPR, including those from the UK, in due course.
	The rights of India's citizens are enshrined in the country's constitution. As the world's largest democracy we recognise the efforts of the Indian Government to address human rights issues, and continue to encourage India to address the challenges that remain.

India

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of progress in India since the last EU human rights dialogue; and what his priorities are for the next dialogue with India.

Hugo Swire: Last year's EU/India human rights dialogue enabled the discussion of a range of human rights issues, including the death penalty, the rights of minorities and efforts to tackle human trafficking.
	We welcome India's continued de facto moratorium on the death penalty, and call for this to be maintained. We also support the Indian authorities' actions to bring the perpetrators of communal violence to justice, and continue to encourage them to provide assistance to the victims. The recent ethnic violence between communities in Assam, and subsequent displacement of hundreds of thousands of people, highlights some of the challenges that remain. We also recognise India's recent efforts on combating people trafficking, including ratification of the United Nations convention against transnational organised crime (and its convention on people trafficking), and the establishment of integrated anti-trafficking units across India.
	We are, however, disappointed that India has not made progress in adopting three key pieces of human rights legislation which are currently with Parliament: the Prevention of Torture Bill (and the subsequent ratification of the UN convention on torture), the Communal Violence Bill, and the Women's Reservation Bill.
	Our priorities for the next dialogue with India include follow up to the UN's Universal Periodic Review of India, prevention of torture, minority rights, and the death penalty.

India

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to authorities in India on the treatment of the Sikh community in that country.

Hugo Swire: While we have not discussed specifically the treatment of the Sikh community with the Indian authorities, the UK is active in encouraging equal treatment of all religious communities in our representations to the Indian Government through our high commission in New Delhi and the annual EU/India human rights dialogue. Our high commissioner in New Delhi also regularly visits Punjab and meets with political leaders from the Sikh community.

Nigeria

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his most recent assessment is of the security situation in Nigeria.

Mark Simmonds: The security situation in Nigeria remains serious. There is a high threat from terrorism in Nigeria: in particular from a group commonly known as Boko Haram. Over the last 24 months they have launched a series of attacks against the Nigerian Government and security forces, Christian and Muslim communities including their places of worship, and the international community. These attacks have included assassinations, commando-style attacks and suicide bombings. Extremists associated with Boko Haram have also targeted westerners for kidnapping, which tragically led to the deaths of a British and Italian national(s) in northern Nigeria in March 2012.

Zimbabwe

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to the Zimbabwean government on the public sector pensions of UK citizens entitled to a Zimbabwean civil service or military pension; and on what dates since May 2010 any such representations have been made.

Mark Simmonds: We have for many years and will continue to make representations, through our embassy in Harare, to the Government of Zimbabwe on the importance of fulfilling their legal responsibilities to former public servants who are entitled to a Zimbabwe Government Pension.
	British embassy officials have met with the relevant Zimbabwean authorities approximately seven times since May 2010, most recently on 2 August 2012. We will continue to press the Zimbabwean authorities to ensure that this process is taken to its conclusion.

Zimbabwe

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has had with countries of the African Union on the payment of civil service or military pensions to UK citizens by the Zimbabwean government.

Mark Simmonds: We have had no discussions with any African Union country except Zimbabwe on the payment of civil service or military pensions to UK citizens by the Zimbabwean Government.
	We will continue to make representations to the Government of Zimbabwe to remind them of their legal responsibilities to former public servants who are entitled to a Zimbabwe Government Pension.

HEALTH

Abortion

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on his Department's proposed consultation on abortion counselling; and when he plans to publish the consultation document.

Anna Soubry: The priority for sexual health is to publish the sexual health policy document this autumn. The document will cover issues relating to improving contraception and abortion services.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS patients in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England waited longer than four hours for accident and emergency treatment in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The Accident and Emergency Clinical Quality Indicator (CQI) for time to treatment was launched in April 2011, therefore 2011-12 is the only full year for which data is available.
	The number of A&E attendances with a recorded time to treatment of 241 minutes (four hours one minute) or more in Coventry, West Midlands (excluding Coventry) and England for 2011-12 is presented in the following table:
	
		
			 A&E attendances with recorded  time t o treatment of 241 minutes or more, in Coventry, West Midlands and England 2011-12 
			  Coventry (1) West Midlands England 
			 Total A&E attendances with a time to treatment recorded 151,432 1,351,432 15,286,562 
			 A&E attendances with a time to treatment of 241 minutes or more 1,062 20,711 328,644 
			 Percentage of A&E attendances with a time to treatment of 241 minutes or more 0.7 1.5 2.1 
			 (1) Excluding Coventry which is presented separately. Source: A&E Hospital Episode Statistics 2011-12 provisional year end (M13). 
		
	
	These figures are taken from provisional year end data, which will be finalised in January 2013.
	These figures are for A&E attendances, rather than individual patients. In any year, a single patient could have had more than one A&E attendance.
	These figures exclude A&E attendances where the time to treatment was left blank. There were 1.2 million blank records for England, 165,000 for the West Midlands and 15,500 for Coventry in 2011-12.

Alcoholic Drinks: Young People

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to tackle the problem of binge drinking by children and young teenagers.

Edward Timpson: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Education.
	The Government believes that investing in high quality education and in early years provision will ensure that children and young people have high ambitions, stay engaged, behave well and reach high levels of educational attainment. These factors all have a positive impact on the risk factors for substance misuse.
	The effects of alcohol are currently covered within personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education and as part of the statutory National Curriculum for Science (both currently under review). Within PSHE, pupils are also taught about the personal and social consequences of misuse for themselves and others.
	In addition to this general support and provision for children and young people, the Department has contributed to the development of the Government's 2012 Alcohol Strategy. One of its aims is to achieve a sustained reduction in both the numbers of 11 to 15-year-olds drinking alcohol and the amounts consumed. The Strategy includes plans to work with the Advertising Standards Agency to improve further the protection of children from the impact of alcohol advertising and to introduce a minimum unit price for alcohol.

Cancer

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what timetable he has set for development of one and five-year cancer survival rate indicators;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure clinical commissioning groups can be held to account for improving cancer survival rates.

Anna Soubry: One and five year survival for breast, colorectal and lung cancers are already included in the first domain of the NHS Outcomes Framework.
	These indicators were also considered for inclusion in the Commissioning Outcomes Framework (COF) when the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published a list of potential measures for public consultation in February 2012. However, following the consultation and a public meeting of NICE's independent advisory committee on 21-22 May, these indicators were not included in NICE'S final recommendations for the COF, published on 1 August. We understand that NICE was unable to include any cancer survival rate measures in its recommendations because it had not, at that stage, been possible to develop an appropriate methodology.
	The Information Centre for health and social care is working with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to develop a methodology for composite one-year and five year survival rate indicators for all cancers for potential inclusion in the NHS Outcomes Framework and Commissioning Outcomes Framework (COF). These are complex measures that require linkage of ONS population statistics with cancer registry data and attribution to clinical commissioning groups, as well as testing the robustness of the measures. It is likely to take some months to complete this work.
	The NHS Commissioning Board (NHS CB) will decide on the content of the COF and is expected to publish the list of measures for 2013-14 in the autumn. If not included in the 2013-14 framework, the board may choose a separate publication route for the data that does exist, to ensure the information is available transparently to the public.
	Public health and the national health service will both have a role to play in delivering the improvements to survival rates. Within the NHS, some services will be commissioned by the NHS CB (primary care and specialised services) and some by clinical commissioning groups for their populations. The role of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) will therefore be to ensure the commissioning of appropriate services to deliver against the areas for which they will be responsible. These will include, for example, commissioning of surgery for cancers that are not covered by the specialised commissioning arrangements and commissioning of follow-up care for most cancers. CCGs are also responsible for supporting the board in improving the quality of primary medical care. It is not possible to separate out what proportion of the 5,000 additional lives to be saved are the responsibility of the different organisations, but they are all responsible for working together to deliver the improvements.

Cancer

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS patients in (a) Coventry, (b) the west midlands and (c) England waited longer than one month from an urgent referral for suspected cancer to the beginning of treatment in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: A maximum waiting time of two months (62 days) between an urgent referral for suspected cancer from the patient's general practitioner (GP) and the start of first definitive treatment for cancer is included within the Operating Framework for the National Health Service in England for 2012-13 and the NHS is expected to meet an operational standard of 85%. While statistics on patients treated within one month of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer are published, there is no specific requirement in the Operating Framework for patients to begin first definitive treatment within one month of an urgent referral for suspected cancer from their GP.
	Statistics on cancer waiting times between referral and treatment have been published since January 2005. However, from 1 January 2009 the definitions and methodology used to calculate these statistics are no longer directly comparable to those used previously. Historic data and an assessment of the impact of the change in methodology are available at:
	www.transparency.dh.gov.uk/cancer-waiting-times/
	The following tables set out the numbers of patients commencing first treatment for cancer within one month of referral and the performance against the two-month maximum waiting time requirement included within the Operating Framework. Statistics in this format were published for the first time from Q4 2008-09.
	All statistics are provider based, and may include patients whose care was commissioned by the Welsh NHS.
	
		
			 University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust 
			 Period Number of patients treated following an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Number of patients treated within one month of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Number of patients treated within two months of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Percentage of pat ients treated within two-month  (62-day) maximum waiting time 
			 Q4 2008-09 209 63.5 182.5 87.3 
			      
			 Q1 2009-10 227.5 77.5 203 89.2 
			 Q2 2009-10 213.5 73.5 187 87.6 
			 Q3 2009-10 223.5 75.5 199.5 89.3 
			 Q4 2009-10 209.5 71.5 188 89.7 
			      
			 Q1 2010-11 229 63 204 89.1 
			 Q2 2010-11 242 52 208 86.0 
			 Q3 2010-11 266 80 237.5 89.3 
			 Q4 2010-11 221.5 71 196 88.5 
			      
			 Q1 2011-12 263.5 68 228 86.5 
			 Q2 2011-12 258 74 224.5 87.0 
			 Q3 2011-12 242.5 71 211 87.0 
			 Q4 2011-12 255.5 85 225.5 88.3 
			      
			 Q1 2012-13 263.5 74 226 85.8 
		
	
	
		
			 All NHS providers in the west midlands 
			 Period Number of patients treated following an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Number of patients treated within one month of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Number of patients treated within two months of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Percentage of patients treated within two-month (62-day) maximum waiting ti me 
			 Q4 2008-09 2,188 741.5 1,904 74.2 
			      
			 Q1 2009-10 2,565 813.5 2,189 85.3 
			 Q2 2009-10 2,626.5 901.5 2,242 87.4 
			 Q3 2009-10 2,576.5 928 2,235 86.7 
			 Q4 2009-10 2,600.5 850.5 2,198 84.5 
			      
			 Q1 2010-11 2,862 909 2,446.5 85.5 
			 Q2 2010-11 2,933.5 888 2,487.5 84.8 
			 Q3 2010-11 2,918.5 877.5 2,510 86.0 
			 Q4 2010-11 2,804 960.5 2,421.5 86.4 
			      
			 Q1 2011-12 3,012.5 967 2,564.5 85.1 
			 Q2 2011-12 3,110 994 2,691.5 86.5 
			 Q3 2011-12 3,158.5 1,068 2,756 87.3 
			 Q4 2011-12 3,214.5 964.5 2,767 86.1 
			      
			 Q1 2012-13 3,118 939.5 2,722.5 87.3 
			 Note: Data are for all NHS providers within the West Midlands Strategic Health Authority area 
		
	
	
		
			 All English NHS providers 
			 Period Number of patients treated following an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Number of patients treated within one month of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Number of patients treated within two months of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer Percentage of patients treated within two-month (62-day) maximum waiting ti me 
			 Q4 2008-09 20,282 6,866 21,387 85.7 
			      
			 Q1 2009-10 23,516 7,440 20,218 86.0 
			 Q2 2009-10 24,955 8,330 21,387 85.7 
			 Q3 2009-10 24,686 8,390 21,388 86.6 
			 Q4 2009-10 24,486 8,215 21,223 86.7 
			      
			 Q1 2010-11 25,590 8,225 22,392 87.5 
			 Q2 2010-11 27,588 8,823 24,024 87.1 
			 Q3 2010-11 26,023 8,382 22,694 87.2 
			 Q4 2010-11 25,834 8,529 22,306 86.3 
			      
			 Q1 2011-12 27,575 8,671 23,890 86.6 
			 Q2 2011-12 28,902 9,409 25,239 87.3 
			 Q3 2011-12 28,467 9,256 25,027 87.9 
			 Q4 2011-12 28,236 9,062 24,640 87.3 
			      
			 Q1 2012-13 28,791 8,792 25,180 87.5 
			 Note: Statistics on waiting times and activity for the two month maximum waiting time between an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer and first definitive treatment are presented on an ‘accountable basis’. Within this, where the patient's pathway of care involves more than one NHS provider the activity statistics are shared equally between the provider where the patient is first seen in clinic following referral and the provider where the patient receives their first definitive treatment (if different). This results in some provider based statistics showing ‘half patients’.

Drugs: Rehabilitation

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of care for (a) Class A, (b) Class B and (c) Class C drug users; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: Information on the health costs of class A drug use is given in the following table and is taken from the Home Office publication, ‘Measuring different aspects of problem drug use: methodological developments’, published in 2006, and available at:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/crime-research/hoor1606?view=Binary
	
		
			 Health costs £ million 
			 In-patient care 198 
			 In-patient mental health 88 
			 A&E 81 
			 Community mental health 61 
			 Primary care—GP visits 32 
			 Neonatal effects 3 
			 Infectious diseases 25 
		
	
	We do not have equivalent estimates for the health costs of Class B and Class C drug use.

General Practitioners

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether local commissioning bodies are required to comply with the local health requirements of their health and wellbeing boards.

Anna Soubry: Health and wellbeing boards provide the forum for local authorities, the national health service and communities to work together to develop a joint understanding of local needs through joint strategic needs assessments (JSNAs), a shared set of priorities and a strategy to address these in joint health and well-being strategies (JHWSs). The key local health and social care commissioners (clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and local authorities) will be represented on each health and wellbeing board with the NHS Commissioning Board also expected to appoint a representative to participate in the preparation of JSNAs and JHWSs.
	The Health and Social Care Act 2012 introduces a new statutory obligation on these key health and social care commissioners to have regard to the relevant JSNA and JHWS in exercising their functions. This means that in making any decisions to which a JSNA or JHWS is relevant (for example a commissioning decision), the body must take account fully of the relevant provisions of the relevant JSNA and JHWS, and consider them properly and seriously, not dismissively.
	CCGs, the NHS Commissioning Board and local authorities will be expected to develop their commissioning plans in line with any relevant JSNA or JHWS, and must be able to justify any parts of their plans which are not consistent. A good JHWS will need to reflect those areas that matter most to local people and where the NHS and local government can make most impact through joint working. As such, each JHWS should be jointly owned by the key commissioners and local communities and it will be in the interests of all parties to ensure that it does form the basis of commissioning plans.

Health Services: Older People

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of differences in the use of intermediate care services across the NHS; and how many strategic health authority areas offer patients at the end of life access to intermediate care services;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to ensure that local areas (a) commission and (b) provide services in line with the latest intermediate care guidance;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the effect on the number of people who are able to die at home of the provision of intermediate care services for people at the end of life.

Norman Lamb: Current guidance on intermediate care provides support and encouragement to service commissioners, providers and practitioners on developing and implementing intermediate care services to meet the health and social care needs of their local communities. It sets out the definitions, service models, and responsibilities for provision, charges and planning.
	From 1 April 2013, health and wellbeing boards will be the forum for the national health service, local authorities and communities to exercise shared leadership in arriving at a joint understanding of local needs, and a shared strategy to address those needs. This will include health and social care commissioners making an assessment of the provision of intermediate care services to best meet local needs. This will include access to the provision of intermediate care services for people at the end of life.
	Audit data from the National Audit of Intermediate Care, which was published on 12 September 2012, will provide the Department and others with independent information on the differences, variation and models of intermediate care services.

Health Services: Older People

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve the care system for elderly people; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: The changes brought about as a result of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 will benefit older people, and other users of the health and care system. These changes will:
	improve quality and choice of care for patients, and increase transparency for taxpayers;
	give GPs and other clinicians the primary responsibility for commissioning health care;
	create a coherent system, of regulation for providers, to drive quality and efficiency; and
	limit Ministers' ability to micromanage, while ensuring they remain ultimately accountable.
	The Social Care White Paper, ‘Caring for our Future: Reforming Care and Support’, was published in July 2012 following a public engagement in 2011. The need for people who receive care and support—the majority of whom are older people—to be to be treated with dignity and respect was a key message from the engagement, and this has been reflected within the White Paper.
	Kindness and compassion, dignity and respect must be central to care, whoever provides it and wherever it is provided. Many of the solutions lie with the local NHS, social care providers and other key partners. But Government has a part to play too. By sharing best practice, bringing people together, and putting in place the right system incentives, the Department can encourage providers to increase the quality of their services to older people.
	A good example is the NHS Operating Framework for 2012-13, which establishes the issue of high quality, dignified and compassionate care as one of four key priorities for the NHS. In January 2012, the Department also announced a package of initiatives aimed at improving the standard of nursing care in this country. This includes the creation of an independently chaired Nursing and Care Quality Forum, the introduction of hourly ward rounds, and the freeing up of nurses so that they can spend more time with patients.
	On 26 March 2012, the Prime Minister launched his Challenge on Dementia, which will increase diagnosis rates, raise awareness and understanding and double funding for research by 2015. The Challenge sets out renewed ambition to go further and faster, building on progress made through the National Dementia Strategy, to secure greater improvements in dementia care and research so that people with dementia, their carers and families get the services and support they need.
	In addition to improving the quality of care delivered to older people, the Department is also supporting the wider system:
	to keep older people well and out of hospital and care homes;
	to help older people regain their independence after a period of support;
	to provide older people with advice and choice around their end of life care; and
	to give older people a greater say in their care.

Hospitals: Fires

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many fires have occurred in NHS hospitals in each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Number of fires reported in the national health service by year 
			  Number 
			 2006-07 2,083 
			 2007-08 1,550 
			 2008-09 1,402 
			 2009-10 1,323 
			 2010-11 1,046 
		
	
	Data for 2011-12 is currently being collected and will be published in October 2012.
	The Department collects data on the number of fires annually, as specified by FIRECODE—HTM 05-01: Managing healthcare fire safety, from the national health service trusts through its estates returns information collection (ERIC). Provision of this data was compulsory for NHS trusts but voluntary for NHS foundation trusts. The data collected has not been amended centrally and its accuracy always remains the responsibility of the contributing NHS organisations.

Hospitals: Liverpool

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time was for (a) heart and (b) eye operations in Liverpool, Walton constituency in each of the last 10 years.

Anna Soubry: The data is not available in the format requested.
	Information showing the mean and median time waited, and eligible finished admission episodes for heart and eye operations, for national health service providers in the local area, is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			 Table 1: Mean and median time waited, and eligible finished admission episodes, for selected providers for heart operations 2001-02 to 2010-11 
			  Provider code Provider name Mean time waited (days) Median time waited (days) Eligible finished admission episodes 
			 2001-02 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 8.3 6 7 
			 2002-03 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 11.2 1 13 
			 2003-04 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 51.1 47 525 
			 2004-05 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 36.5 30 877 
			 2005-06 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 34.1 26 912 
			 2006-07 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 29.0 21 964 
			 2007-08 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 18.6 14 861 
			 2008-09 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 13.9 12 681 
			 2009-10 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 15.6 14 710 
			 2010-11 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 17.8 14 639 
			       
			 2001-02 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 118.8 80 309 
			 2002-03 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 122.0 98 287 
			 2003-04 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 112.9 89 355 
			 2004-05 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 90.5 67 ^ 315 
			 2005-06 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 73.9 48 236 
			 2006-07 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 71.4 36 226 
			 2007-08 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 60.1 40 190 
			 2008-09 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 64.7 36 69 
			 2009-10 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 63.6 27 135 
			 2010-11 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 56.5 41 128 
			       
			 2001-02 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 79.7 36 6,254 
			 2002-03 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 98.9 61 7,049 
			 2003-04 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 93.8 70 6,737 
			 2004-05 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 81.8 64 5,807 
			 2005-06 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 70.1 59 5,473 
			 2006-07 RBO Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 52.4 41 4,647 
			 2007-08 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 47.0 38 5,003 
			 2008-09 RBO Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 40.1 34 5,089 
			 2009-10 RBQ Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 38.2 32 4,787 
			 2010-11 RBO Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust 41.2 34 4,760 
			       
		
	
	
		
			 2001-02 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 117.9 111 390 
			 2002-03 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 85.8 78 466 
			 2003-04 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 73.9 65 424 
			 2004-05 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 89.6 67 409 
			 2005-06 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 95.3 92 426 
			 2006-07 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 84.8 73 583 
			 2007-08 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 42.0 35 656 
			 2008-09 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 32.4 29 548 
			 2009-10 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 31.0 29 454 
			 2010-11 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 43.3 40 484 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Mean and median time waited, and eligible finished admission episodes, for selected providers for eye operations 2001-02 to 2010-11 
			  Provider code Provider name Mean time waited (days) Median time waited (days) Eligible finished admission episodes 
			 2001-02 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 133.5 83 3,024 
			 2002-03 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 101.9 68 2,806 
			 2003-04 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 87.3 64 2,757 
			 2004-05 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 53.5 43 2,496 
			 2005-06 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 53.4 51 ¦ 2,541 
			 2006-07 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 50.2 49 2,850 
			 2007-08 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 39.2 36 3,581 
			 2008-09 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 34.5 35 3,312 
			 2009-10 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 44.3 41 3,328 
			 2010-11 REM Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 53.8 53 2,960 
			       
			 2001-02 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 64.7 48 423 
			 2002-03 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 58.3 46 374 
			 2003-04 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 75.6 63 423 
			 2004-05 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 63.0 51 358 
			 2005-06 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 57.6 46 329 
			 2006-07 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 56.3 41 431 
			 2007-08 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 46.3 38 456 
			 2008-09 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 57.7 53 207 
			 2009-10 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 63.4 55 .407 
			 2010-11 RBS Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust 61.6 54 431 
			       
		
	
	
		
			 2001-02 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 130.1 72 5,684 
			 2002-03 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 136.7 81 4,515 
			 2003-04 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 128.2 101 4,889 
			 2004-05 R06 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 75.1 65 4,523 
			 2005-06 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 68.6 62 4,745 
			 2006-07 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 68.0 68 5,316 
			 2007-08 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 59.5 53 5,948 
			 2008-09 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 51.4 50 5,683 
			 2009-10 R06 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 43.7 42 5,395 
			 2010-11 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust 47.7 40 4,874 
			 Notes: 1. Data is not available at constituency level. 2. Time waited (days) statistics from Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are not the same as published Referral to Treatment (RTT) time waited statistics. HES provides counts and time waited for all patients between decision to admit and admission to hospital within a given period. Published RTT waiting statistics measure the time waited between referral and start of treatment. 3. A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. FAEs are considered eligible for the time waited measure when the admission is booked or elective, i.e. emergency admissions are excluded. 4. The first recorded procedure or intervention in each episode, usually the most resource intensive procedure or intervention performed during the episode. It is appropriate to use main procedure when looking at admission details, (e.g. time waited), but a more complete count of episodes with a particular procedure is obtained by looking at the main and the secondary procedures. Heart operations are identified as those records with a main operative procedure code starting with K. Eye operation are identified as those records with a main operative procedure code starting with C. 5. HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre, Hospital Episode Statistics, activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector

Hospitals: Swindon

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what percentage hospital admissions in Swindon are forecast to change over the next 20 years.

Anna Soubry: The information requested is not held centrally. This is a matter for the national health service locally. My hon. Friend may wish to contact NHS Swindon who are still responsible for commissioning services for his constituents. NHS Swindon are working with the emerging clinical commissioning group about the planning assumptions being made about acute admissions in Swindon.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many NHS patients in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England waited for more than a year for treatment in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what the average waiting time was for NHS treatment in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The information is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Number of patients who waited over 52 weeks 
			  2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 
			  Admitted Non-admitted Admitted. Non-admitted Admitted Non-admitted Admitted Non-admitted 
			 Coventry PCT 261 742 13 53 6 12 9 3 
			 West Midlands SHA 2,791 7,667 408 2,261 445 2,167 1,147 1,960 
			 England 21,819 53,819 5,151 14,993 4,160 11,191 7,389 13,045 
		
	
	
		
			  Average (median) wait in weeks 
			  2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 
			  Admitted Non-admitted Admitted Non-admitted Admitted Non-admitted Admitted Non-admitted 
			 Coventry PCT 7.7 3.4 7.2 3.4 7.3 4.0 6.2 3.6 
			 West Midlands SHA 8.1 4.0 8.0 4.0 8.2 4.1 8.5 4.0 
			 England 8.1 4.2 8.1 4.3 8.4 4.2 8.3 4.0 
			 Note: Information relates to the whole financial year in each case. Data for the full year 2007-08 is not available as admitted adjusted figures are only available from March 2008 and non-admitted figures from August 2007. Source: Departmental referral to treatment waiting times statistics (Unify2 data collection).

Mesothelioma: Merseyside

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in each hospital trust in Merseyside were diagnosed with mesothelioma in each of the last five years; what plans he has to provide funding for improved treatment of mesothelioma; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: Information cannot be provided in the format requested. In the following table, we have provided incidence of mesothelioma in each primary care trust (PCT) in the metropolitan county of Merseyside in each of the last five years for which data are available.
	
		
			 PCT 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 
			 Halton and St Helens 11 19 7 9 11 
			 Knowsley 4 2 7 7 9 
			 Liverpool 20 15 18 17 19 
			 Sefton 13 8 12 12 14 
			 Wirral 13 23 29 35 26 
			 Notes: 1. Mesothelioma is coded as C45 in the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD 10). 2. Figures are based on boundaries as of 2012 and exclude non-residents. 3. Newly diagnosed cases registered in each calendar year. Source: Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	We are committed to improving outcomes for all cancer patients, including those with mesothelioma. ‘Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer’, published on 12 January 2011, set out actions to tackle preventable cancer incidence; improve the quality and efficiency of cancer services; improve patients' experience of care; improve quality of life for cancer survivors; and deliver survival outcomes that are comparable with the best in Europe. To support delivery of the strategy, we are providing more than £750 million of funding over a period of four years until 2014-15.

Pay

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who the 10 highest paid staff are in his Department; and what the annual salary is of each such member of staff.

Daniel Poulter: The details of the 10 highest paid staff employed by the Department as at the end of August 2012 and their annual salaries are presented in the following table.
	
		
			 Name Role Basic salary in range Total salary in range 
			 David Nicholson Chief Executive National Health Service £210,000-£215,000 £210,000-£215,000 
			 Sally Davies Chief Medical Officer £200,000-£205,000 £200,000-£205,000 
			 Duncan Selbie Chief Executive Designate Public Health England £180,000-£185,000 £180,000-£185,000 
			 David Salisbury Director of Immunisation £110,000-£115,000 £170,000-£175,000 
			 Paul Johnstone Regional Director of Public Health £85,000-£90,000 £170,000-£175,000 
			 Rashmi Shukla Regional Director of Public Health £90,000-£95,000 £160,000-£165,000 
			 Una O'Brien Permanent Secretary £160,000-£165,000 £160,000-£165,000 
			 David Harper Seconded out to World Health Organization £130,000-£135,000 £155,000-£160,000 
			 Mahmood Adil Quality Improvement Programme and Productivity Adviser for Clinical and Finance Engagement £85,000-£90,000 £150,000-£155,000 
			 Judith Jones Deputy Director Public Health Intelligence, Leadership and Workforce Development £90,000-£95,000 £140,000-£145,000 
			 Notes: 1. Non-consolidated performance related pay is excluded from the table. 2. Employees seconded out to other organisations are included where the Department meets their full salary. 3. Individuals seconded into the Department are excluded as their salary information is not held centrally.

Procurement

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the name is of each company with which his Department has a contract; what the monetary value of each such contract is; and what is provided to his Department under the terms of the contract.

Daniel Poulter: The information is not readily available and to examine the many thousands of commercial transactions held on the Department's central procurement systems and government procurement card transactions and extract the specific information requested for current contracts could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The Department uses the central Government procurement portal, Contracts Finder, to publish information and contract documentation for many new contracts with a value above £10,000.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to implement the recommendations of the National Audit Office's report, Central Government's implementation of the national Compact.

Norman Lamb: We welcomed the National Audit Office review of implementation of the Compact in 2011 and the subsequent report published in January 2012. The Department has already taken the following actions to ensure the Compact is being implemented:
	reviewed and monitored consultation lengths, to ensure consultations with the CSO sector are 12 weeks, where possible;
	incorporated the Compact in its own cross-departmental guidance on matters like grant funding and procurement; and
	monitored departmental Compact compliance, via the number of complaints received about the implementation of the Compact.
	The Department does recognise the need to take forward those recommendations within the report that will help it further embed Compact principles into its activities. These actions are laid out in the Department's Business Plan.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Anti-slavery Day

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to mark Anti-Slavery Day on 18 October 2012.

Mark Harper: The Home Office is currently finalising a range of co-ordinated activities for members of the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on human trafficking to mark Anti-Slavery Day and to raise awareness.

Arrests: Football

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were (a) arrested at and (b) ejected from football stadiums by the police in each year since 1990.

Damian Green: holding answer 11 September 2012
	Data on arrests in connection with football matches is collated and reported annually on the basis of club supported and type of offence. The location of each football-related arrest was not recorded centrally prior to the 2003-04 season. Data on ejections from football stadia is not recorded centrally.
	Information in answer to part (a) is presented in the following table:
	
		
			 Football-related arrests inside stadia in England and Wales 2003-04 season to 2010-11 season 
			 Football season Number 
			 2003-04 1,732 
			 2004-05 1,491 
			 2005-06 1,655 
			 2006-07 1,642 
			 2007-08 1,555 
			 2008-09 1,495 
			 2009-10 1,454 
			 2010-11 1,548

Civil Disorder

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many payments have been made under the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 to date; and how much in total has been paid out.

Damian Green: While decisions and payments on the Riot (Damages) Act 1886 claims are entirely a matter for police authorities, the Government has worked closely with affected authorities to ensure victims are fully compensated. As of early September, police authorities have now settled the majority of uninsured claims:
	95% of all active valid uninsured individuals' claims originally received have now been dealt with by police authorities.
	The Metropolitan Police Service also received a number of further claims for compensation after insurers had repudiated claims. Decisions have been made on 85% of these cases.

Drugs: Crime

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to which countries with capital punishment for drugs offences does the UK provide bilateral assistance on drug enforcement; and what steps she has taken to ensure that such assistance is not provided in cases which might result in the imposition of the death penalty.

Jeremy Browne: Her Majesty's Government provides bilateral assistance on drug enforcement to a range of key international partners with a focus on reducing the drugs threat posed to the UK.
	We cannot give a detailed response regarding the location of resources overseas, as the effectiveness of our work with international partners can be reduced by disclosing specific locations. However, the deployment of resources in relation to drugs is focused on locations that enable us to reduce the supply of drugs to the UK and is done so in a manner that promotes, rather than undermines, human rights and democracy.
	We take human rights issues very seriously in our counter-narcotics work. In December 2011, the Government published the Overseas Security and Justice Assistance (OSJA) Guidance. The guidance provides a clear framework to help officials identify the human rights risks, propose appropriate measures to mitigate these risks and produce a final assessment. It also sets out when the decision to provide assistance should be taken by senior personnel or Ministers. This helps to ensure that our overseas assistance supports our values and is consistent with our domestic and international human rights obligations.

Drugs: Misuse

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether her Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the global war on drugs;
	(2)  whether her Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs in achieving its stated aims.

Jeremy Browne: holding answer 11 September 2012
	The Home Department has not made any formal assessment of the impact of any global drug policies. This includes the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs and what is referred to as the Global War on Drugs.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of whether the UK Border Agency has fulfilled its commitment to an holistic approach in assessing colleges under the highly trusted status procedures of the Tier 4 points-based immigration system; and if she will make a statement.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency has applied an holistic approach in the consideration of highly trusted sponsor licence applications on a case by case basis. The holistic approach is applied when there are exceptional circumstances in a specific case, such as when the numbers of Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) that a sponsor has issued are so low as to have a disproportionate effect on the numeric assessment.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many educational institutions had their highly trusted status licence refused, suspended or downgraded prior to April 2011 on the basis of failure to report a visa refusal.

Mark Harper: It is not possible to provide figures on the number of institutions that have had their highly trusted sponsor (HTS) status refused, prior to April 2011 based on failure to report visa refusals.
	The number of educational institutions that had their HTS status suspended or downgraded based on the failure to report a visa refusal is zero.

Human Trafficking

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans her Department has to make the National Referral Mechanism for Victims of Trafficking a responsibility of the National Crime Agency.

Mark Harper: The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is a multiagency framework for identifying and protecting victims of human trafficking. The UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC), part of the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), is responsible for administering data gathered through the NRM. We plan for SOCA's NRM responsibilities to transition to the National Crime Agency (NCA) along with other capabilities of SOCA at vesting. We are currently conducting detailed design work on the structures of the NCA, including where the NRM would be most effective within the Agency.

Human Trafficking: Children

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to ensure all local authorities set up a local multi-agency information sharing process to share information on patterns and cases of child trafficking in their area.

Mark Harper: Child trafficking is a form of child abuse. In addition to the existing statutory arrangements in place to enable information sharing among partners on child protection issues the Home Office is funding a local multi-agency safeguarding project to support local areas to develop their partnership and information sharing arrangements to safeguard and manage the risks to children and vulnerable people in their area.

London Metropolitan University

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many overseas students studying at London Metropolitan University have been contacted by the UK Border Agency concerning their status in the UK since 29 August 2012.

Mark Harper: holding answer 11 September 2012
	The UK Border Agency will not be contacting students who have current leave to remain until 1 October 2012 at the earliest. The Agency will then contact those students who have not submitted an application for further leave to remain or who have left the country to inquire about their status. The UK Border Agency has contacted, or attempted contact with the 26 students identified as having studied at London Metropolitan university that had no leave to remain in the United Kingdom.

London Metropolitan University

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officials of the UK Border Agency have been deployed to the task force for London Metropolitan university; and what their remit is.

Mark Harper: holding answer 11 September 2012
	The UK Border Agency has two members of staff working with the Government taskforce created to assist London Metropolitan university to find alternative education for legitimate overseas students.

Ministerial Ethnic Minority Steering Group

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Ministerial Ethnic Minority Steering Group is still constituted; on how many occasions it has met since May 2010; and how many such meetings were chaired by a Minister.

Damian Green: The last meeting of the Ministerial Ethnic Minority Steering Group was held in December 2009. The Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) and Ministers hold regular discussions with representatives from police forces on a wide range of issues, including on matters of equality and diversity.

Police and Crime Commissioners

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to publish data providing comparable national statistical information on police and crime commissioner performance in different geographical areas in England and Wales; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: The Government will not be centrally monitoring police and crime commissioners’ (PCCs) performance. Police and crime commissioners will be held to account by their local communities, not by central Government.
	Police.uk will provide people with local and comparable crime information which they can use to hold PCCs to account.

Police and Crime Commissioners

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she expects to publish the Welsh Forms Order for police and crime commissioner elections.

Damian Green: We plan to lay the order on 15 October; the earliest date that both Houses of Parliament are sitting.

Police: Conditions of Employment

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 17 July 2012, Official Report, column 662W, on police: conditions of employment, what the involvement was of other members of Tom Winsor's firm with forces and on what dates that involvement began; and on what date and by what means Tom Winsor was informed of that involvement.

Damian Green: Decisions to engage external advisers to support specific procurement exercises or change programmes are a matter for chief officers, working with their police authorities, and, from November, police and crime commissioners. This includes the terms and conditions of any such contracts agreed between the force or authorities and its contractor.
	As set out in the answer of 17 July, Tom Winsor worked independently of his firm to produce a comprehensive set of proposals which should be debated on their own merits. He made no recommendations relating to the use of the private sector in policing.

Police: Surveillance

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department has issued any guidance to chief constables on the circumstances in which authorisation should be given to an undercover police officer to (a) start and (b) continue a sexual relationship with someone who is the target of undercover surveillance; whether any such guidance includes making provision for appropriate supervisory arrangements to ensure that officers do not start or continue relationships without authorisation; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: No. The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and its associated statutory code of practice make it clear that deployment of undercover police officers as covert human intelligence sources is required to be necessary and proportionate and to be closely monitored and managed by the force concerned.
	The personal conduct of any police officer is a matter for the force concerned.

Police: Uniforms

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she has received representations on possible confusion between the uniforms worn by Newham law enforcement officers and those worn by police officers.

Damian Green: No such representations have been received. I understand that a number of Newham council officers have been accredited under the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme, which enables the police to accredit individuals with limited powers to assist in responding to the needs of their community. Accreditation under the scheme within the Metropolitan police area is a matter for the Commissioner, who must also approve any uniform worn by accredited persons.
	Guidance on the scheme is provided by the Association of Chief Police Officers.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Postal Services

Nick de Bois: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much the House spent on Royal Mail unpaid postage fees in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011; and what steps are being taken to reduce these costs.

John Thurso: Unpaid postage costs in the last three financial years have been as follows:
	2009-10: £10,397.33
	2010-11: £10,627.94
	2011-12: £11,811.22
	Following the 30% increase in the cost of most postage in April 2012 a variety of proposals were considered to reduce costs. These proposals included the House administration ceasing to meet the costs of surcharges incurred through non payment of postage on correspondence addressed to Members at Westminster. After consultation with the Administration Committee and the Finance and Services Committee the Commission decided to continue to meet these costs as not to do so would have a direct impact on the conduct of Members' parliamentary business and might disadvantage vulnerable constituents.

JUSTICE

Driving Under Influence

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) women and (b) men were found guilty of drink driving, in each region in each of the last five years.

Damian Green: The number of persons found guilty at all courts for drink driving offences by sex and region, in England and Wales for the period 2007 to 2011 can be viewed in the following table.
	
		
			 Persons found guilty at all courts for drink driving offences (1) , by sex and region, England and Wales, 2007-11 (2, 3) 
			  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 Male      
			 North-east 3,051 2,845 2,620 2,131 1,884 
			 North-west 8,375 7,136 6,813 5,697 5,189 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 5,266 4,573 4,890 3,955 3,537 
			 East midlands 4,692 4,280 4,045 3,510 3,218 
			 West midlands 7,041 6,051 5,702 4,298 4,392 
			 East of England 6,206 5,519 5,203 4,468 4,091 
			 London 8,957 8,077 7,464 6,465 5,646 
			 South-east 9,294 8,158 7,051 6,377 6,111 
			 South-west 5,126 4,679 4,268 3,685 3,729 
			 Wales 4,016 3,253 3,331 2,599 2,558 
			 Total 62,024 54,571 51,387 43,185 40,355 
			 Female      
			 North-east 562 545 533 479 454 
			 North-west 1,492 1,518 1,588 1,320 1,252 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 791 730 848 713 677 
			 East midlands 652 671 674 623 618 
			 West midlands 941 882 966 811 806 
			 East of England 1,032 985 1,025 961 851 
			 London 1,125 1,125 1,302 1,145 994 
			 South-east 1,567 1,495 1,446 1,353 1,315 
			 South-west 940 859 864 768 778 
			 Wales 673 639 639 593 624 
			 Total 9,775 9,449 9,885 8,766 8,369 
			       
			 Total (4)      
			 North-east 3,613 3,396 3,154 2,612 2,347 
			 North-west 9,867 8,737 8,432 7,032 6,463 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 6,057 5,318 5,747 4,675 4,228 
			 East midlands 5,344 4,966 4,724 4,137 3,844 
			 West midlands 7,982 6,966 6,691 5,120 5,213 
			 East of England 7,238 6,526 6,246 5,442 4,959 
			 London 10,082 9,284 8,807 7,648 6,684 
			 South-east 10,861 9,699 8,511 7,739 7,441 
			 South-west 6,066 5,568 5,149 4,468 4,520 
			 Wales 4,689 3,897 3,976 3,196 3,184 
			 Total 71,799 64,357 61,437 52,069 48,883 
			 (1) Includes the following offences: Road Traffic Act 1988, S.4(1)—Driving or attempting to drive a mechanically propelled vehicle whilst unfit to drive through drink Road Traffic Act 1988, S.4(2)—Being in charge of mechanically propelled vehicle whilst unfit to drive through drink Road Traffic Act 1988, S.5(1)(a)—Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle while having a breath, blood or urine alcohol concentration in excess of the prescribed limit Road Traffic Act 1988, S.5(1)(b)—In charge of a motor vehicle while having a breath, blood or urine alcohol concentration in excess of the prescribed limit Road Traffic Act 1988, S.6(6)—Failing without reasonable excuse to provide a specimen of breath for a preliminary test (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4 )The gender of a defendant proceeded against may not have been reported. These data have been included in the persons only totals. Therefore, males and females age group totals and sub-totals may not agree with the totals given under persons. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

Hospitals: Crimes of Violence

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted in relation to assaults on hospital staff in each region in the last two years.

Damian Green: Information held centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the Court Proceedings Database does not contain information about the circumstances behind each case, beyond the description provided in the statute under which proceedings are brought. It is not possible therefore to separately identify how many cases were brought in respect of assaults specifically on hospital staff.

Pay

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the likely (a) highest, (b) median, (c) median full-time equivalent and (d) lowest full-time equivalent salary to be paid by his Department in 2012-13.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice and its agencies effectively operate three sets of pay structures and arrangements. One set covers senior civil servants (SCS) within the Department; another set covers staff below the SCS in the core Department and two of its executive agencies (Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) and the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)); and a third set covers staff below the SCS in the remaining executive agency, the National Offender Management Service (NOMS).
	Because the levels of salary under each pay structure differ, the information requested, which is for the 2012-13 remit year, is provided separately for each in the following tables:
	
		
			 Senior civil servants (SCS) 
			  £ 
			 (a) Estimated highest salary 180,000 
			 (b) Estimated median salary (i.e. reduced from full time equivalent (FTE) to reflect part-time working) 78,245 
			 (c ) Estimated median FTE salary 80,000 
			 (d) Estimated lowest FTE salary 58,200 
		
	
	
		
			 Ministry of Justice (including HMCTS and OPG) excluding SCS 
			  £ 
			 (a) Estimated highest salary 130,000 
			 (b) Estimated median salary (i.e. reduced from full time equivalent (FTE) to reflect part-time working) 19,029 
			 (c) Estimated median FTE salary 20,050 
			 (d) Estimated lowest FTE salary 13,638 
		
	
	
		
			 National Offender Management Service (NOMS) excluding SCS 
			 £ 
			 (a) Estimated highest salary 150,000 
			 (b) Estimated median salary (i.e. reduced from full time equivalent (FTE) to reflect part-time working) 24,203 
			 (c) Estimated median FTE salary 25,915 
			 (d) Estimated lowest FTE salary 13,002

Road Traffic Offences

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many foreign registered vehicles from each country of registration were the subject of prosecutions for road traffic offences in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many drivers in foreign registered vehicles of each licence nationality were prosecuted for road traffic offences in each of the last five years;
	(3)  what the total value was of fines for road traffic offences levied against foreign registered vehicles and uncollected in each of the last five years.

Damian Green: The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. This database holds information on offences provided by the statutes under which proceedings are brought but not all the specific circumstances of each case. It is not possible to identify from this centrally held information if a vehicle involved in the committing of a criminal offence is foreign registered.

Trials

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse was of the legal action brought by Mr Berezovsky against Mr Abramovich.

Helen Grant: Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service recovers the cost of civil cases from users, in line with the fee charging requirements set out in the Treasury's ‘Managing Public Money’. On that basis, there was no cost to the public purse from the legal action brought by Mr Berezovsky against Mr Abramovich.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

House Business Committee

Simon Hughes: To ask the Leader of the House what steps he is taking to introduce a House Business Committee.

Andrew Lansley: As I informed the House during oral questions today, I look forward to continuing discussions about the Government's commitment to a House Business Committee in the Coalition programme for government.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Pay

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate she has made of the likely (a) highest, (b) median, (c) median full-time equivalent and (d) lowest full-time equivalent salary to be paid by her Department in 2012-13.

Michael Penning: Following the devolution of policing and criminal justice functions to the Department of Justice (NI) in April 2010, the Northern Ireland Office adopted Ministry of Justice (MOJ) terms and conditions, including pay. The current pay freeze across MOJ remains in place until August 2013 and therefore no estimates have been made in relation to changes in full-time salary equivalents.

Public Order

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions she has issued certificates stating that an act has been done for the purpose of safeguarding national security or protecting public order under (a) regulation 53ZA Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 (as amended), (b) article 80 of the Fair Employment and Treatment Order 1998, (c) article 41A of the Race Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1997, (d) regulation 30 of the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 and (e) regulation 27 of the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003 in the latest period for which figures are available.

Michael Penning: No such certificates have been issued since the current government came into power.

PRIME MINISTER

Departmental Responsibilities

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Prime Minister if he will publish the details of his meetings on 4 September 2012 with the Secretary of State for International Development in connection with her appointment to the position.

David Cameron: It is longstanding Government practice not to disclose information relating to ministerial meetings, including the proceedings of Cabinet and Cabinet committees, as to do so would put at risk the public interest in the full and frank discussion of policy by Ministers.

SCOTLAND

Infrastructure: (Financial Assistance) Bill

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to his answer of 6 September 2012, Official Report, column 397W, on the Infrastructure (Financial Assistance) Bill, what criteria will be used to assess applications for the Infrastructure Guarantee Programme.

Michael Moore: Eligible projects will be subject to charges, due diligence and as a minimum must meet five key tests. An eligible project must be:
	nationally significant;
	ready to start construction within 12 months;
	financially credible;
	dependent on a guarantee to proceed; and
	good value to the taxpayer.
	The Government will consider the most effective form of guarantee on a case-by-case basis using a robust assessment and approvals process.

Pay

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what estimate he has made of the likely (a) highest, (b) median, (c) median full-time equivalent and (d) lowest full-time equivalent salary to be paid by his Department in 2012-13.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff directly. All staff join the Office on a secondment type arrangement, mainly from the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice, which remain the employing Departments. Not all bodies have set their pay levels for 2012-13 so full-time equivalent salary information cannot be provided.

West Coast Railway Line

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to the answer of 6 September 2012, Official Report, column 398W, on the West Coast railway line, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the effect on Scotland of the decision to allow new franchisees on the West Coast Mainline to increase fares by eight per cent above the retail price index in 2013 and 2014.

Michael Moore: Scotland Office Ministers and officials regularly meet counterparts at the Department for Transport to discuss cross-border transport issues affecting Scotland.
	Bidders for the West Coast Mainline franchise were told to use the planning assumptions from the 2010 spending review, as updated by the autumn statement, as the basis for their bids. This caps average increases for regulated fares at RPI+3% for 2013 and 2014, and RPI+1% for all other years.

Winter Fuel Payments

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many people who live in Scotland are eligible for winter fuel allowance.

David Mundell: In the most recent year for which data is available (2010-11) 1,113,920 people received winter fuel payments in Scotland.
	The information for 2010-11 is provided in the documents "Winter Fuel Payment recipients 2010-11 by Parliamentary Constituencies and Gender (All)" and "Winter Fuel Payment recipients 2010-2011 by Local Authority and Gender (All)". These are available in the Commons Library and on the following link:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=wfp
	The number of recipients in winter 2011-12 is expected to be broadly similar to last year, although in future a slight reduction in the number of people receiving winter fuel payments each winter is likely as the qualifying age increases in line with women's state pension age.

Winter Fuel Payments

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department paid out in winter fuel allowance to people in Scotland in each of the last three financial years.

David Mundell: In the last three financial years the Department for Work and Pensions paid the following amounts to recipients of winter fuel payments in Scotland:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2008-09 236,000,000 
			 2009-10 240,000,000 
			 2010-11 240,000,000 
		
	
	The information is available in the document "Winter Fuel Payment recipients 2010-11 by Parliamentary Constituencies and Gender (All)". This is available in the Commons Library and on the following link:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=wfp

Working Tax Credit

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to the answer of 6 September 2012, Official Report, column 398W, on working tax credit, what the monetary value was of payments made through the childcare component of working tax credit in Scotland in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the monetary value of such payments in each year to 2015.

Michael Moore: Information on annual awards of the child care element of working tax credit in Scotland and the UK in past years is provided in the series "Personal Tax Credits: Finalised Award Statistics—Geographical Statistics", which is published by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and is available online at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/menu.htm
	The estimated(1) monetary value of the payments for the UK for 2011-12 is £1,430 million. The forecast(2) monetary value for the UK for 2012-13 is £1,490 million, for 2013-14 is £1,560 million and for 2014-15 is £1,650 million. There are no figures available for Scotland for the years 2011-12 to 2014-15.
	(1) Finalised award statistics not yet available for 2011-12. UK estimate produced using the average number of families benefiting from the child care element and the average monetary value of the help they receive with child care costs based on monthly snapshot statistics.
	(2) Forecasts for 2012-13 onwards are drawn from the Budget 2012 Tax Credits expenditure forecast. Forecasts are not produced at a sub-UK level and so the forecast expenditure for Scotland is not available.

TRANSPORT

Airports: Thames Estuary

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what powers he has to direct any windfall gained from a sale of the Heathrow site into funding the construction of an airport in the Thames Estuary.

Simon Burns: The Government has no financial stake in Heathrow and any hypothetical sale of the airport would be a commercial matter for the airport operator.
	The Government believes that maintaining the UK's status as a leading global aviation hub is fundamental to our long term international competitiveness and we have appointed Sir Howard Davies to chair an independent commission tasked with identifying and recommending to Government options for maintaining this country's status as an international hub for aviation.

Bus Services: Visual Impairment

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he plans to encourage greater use of talking buses to assist blind passengers.

Norman Baker: The Government recognises that many people find audio and visual announcements useful. I have recently written to bus operators to encourage them to work in partnership with their local authorities, to see if the uptake of these systems can be increased.
	In June, I chaired a Department for Transport summit on how best to improve door to door journeys for disabled people. As a result of this, and as part of the Government's Olympic and Paralympic legacy, we are currently looking at a number of ways of improving the accessibility of public transport. The outcome of this work will be included in the Department's Disability Action Plan, to be published by the end of September.

Heathrow Airport

Mark Reckless: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many airport slots are used for flights from Heathrow to Manchester; and what proportion of the total number of slots this figure represents.

Simon Burns: The number of air transport movements from Heathrow to Manchester airport in 2011 was 4,671. This figure accounted for 2% of all departures from Heathrow.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of local traffic effects arising from the proposed HS2 Old Oak Common interchange.

Simon Burns: HS2 Ltd are undertaking local traffic assessments to inform the design of the proposed Old Oak Common interchange station. These assessments cover all the expected transport modes including bus, taxi, bike, pedestrian and car. The methodology being used for the assessments have been discussed with our stakeholders and follows recognised industry practice. The assessment work concludes in December (12) and the results will be shared with our stakeholders and their own assessments. The conclusion of this comparison will then be included into the design and environmental statement in support of the hybrid Bill process.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the March 2012 advice his Department received from HS2 Ltd, when he plans to announce the route and station option for Leeds, Manchester and Heathrow.

Simon Burns: The advice received from HS2 Ltd is currently being considered objectively and in detail. The Department's business plan indicates that we intend to publish for consideration the Government's preferred route and station options by December.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the High Level Output Specification, whether the cost of the western connection to Heathrow will be included in High Speed 2 cost estimates.

Simon Burns: The cost of the western connection to Heathrow airport will not be included in the High Speed 2 cost estimates. The western connection is being built as an expansion of the existing rail network from the Great Western Main Line to improve airport access from the Thames Valley and the west.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  for what reason a different methodology was used to assess the value of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the Preliminary Landscape Assessment study undertaken by HS2 in 2010 and the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  for what reason the Preliminary Landscape Assessment study undertaken by HS2 in 2010 into the effect of HS2 on the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty was not included in the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will publish the methodology used to assess the land value categorisation of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The assessment made by HS2 Ltd in 2010 was early internal work designed to give a broad indication of the potential monetary value of the landscape that might be affected by the railway. It was deliberately conservative and did not factor in many of the mitigation measures such as tunnelling and cutting that had not yet been developed at that time. It also assumed the highest possible valuations of land and did not account for areas where existing development has already reduced the value of the landscape.
	In line with departmental practice, a more detailed assessment of the potential value of landscape was carried out before the Secretary of State took a decision to proceed with HS2. This assessment published in January 2012 was therefore based on more accurate route and land type information including the additional mitigation measures such as tunnelling and cutting introduced following consultation. The DFT assessment was therefore considered more robust and formed part of the economic case.
	The methodology used by the DFT to assess landscape is already available on the Department's website at:
	www.dft.gov.uk/foi
	under FOI reference e0008944.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport about the effect of the High Speed Rail 2 project on tourism in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Since taking up my post, neither I nor my Ministers have had any meeting with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke (Maria Miller). However the Department for Culture Media and Sport, along with English Heritage, have been involved with the HS2 scheme from its inception, inputting into the Appraisal of Sustainability and providing cross-Government clearance as appropriate. As the scheme develops they will be instrumental in providing advice on the associated environmental impact assessment.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what methodology he used to assess the value of the Chilterns Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  for what reason non-urban land in the Chilterns Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty was valued at the lowest land value categorisation in the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what meetings he has planned with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to discuss the land value categorisation of the Chilterns Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: In the area between the M25 and Amersham the railway is judged to have a relatively low effect on the landscape because the vast majority of this section is proposed to be in underground tunnel.
	The area between Amersham and the Chilterns northern edge was given the highest landscape valuation per hectare along the entire HS2 route from London to Birmingham. This valuation reflects the character of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and remains high even after accounting for the high levels of mitigation such as tunnelling and deep cuttings that were judged to be appropriate for an AONB.
	A breakdown of the monetary valuation that was attributed to landscape by area and methodology used is already available on the Department's website at
	www.dft.gov.uk/foi
	under FOI reference e0008944.
	I have no plans to meet the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), to discuss land value categorisation in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. However, officials in the Department for Transport have regular discussions with their counterparts in other Government Departments regarding economic appraisal methods on a variety of topics including landscape valuation.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review the land value categorisation of non-urban land in the Chilterns Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The approach to land value categorisation undertaken by the Department for Transport is based upon the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) document “Valuing the External Benefits of Undeveloped Land” which was originally published in 2001. A copy of this document can be obtained from the DCLG website. There are currently no plans to update the Department for Transport's work. However, my officials have regular discussions with their counterparts in other Government Departments regarding economic appraisal methods on a variety of topics including landscape valuation.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the lower landtype categorisation of non-urban land in the Chilterns Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty included in the Economic Case for HS2: Value for Money Statement published by his Department in January 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Since taking up my post, neither I nor my Ministers have had any discussions with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), on land type categorisation.

Large Goods Vehicles: Working Hours

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review his Department's decision on the rights of large goods vehicle drivers to an employment tribunal claim if they are prevented from taking daily rest breaks and weekly rest periods by their employers.

Stephen Hammond: We have no plans to review the Department's decision, as drivers' working time rights are already protected by a criminal law regime which the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) enforces.

Marine Accident Investigation Branch

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many investigations the Maritime Accident Investigation Branch conducted in each year since 1998.

Stephen Hammond: The number of investigations conducted(1) by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch in each year since 1998 is as follows:
	
		
			 Year investigation started MAIB investigation Preliminary examination 
			 1998 38 — 
			 1999 39 — 
			 2000 50 — 
			 2001 42 — 
			 2002 24 13 
			 2003 15 24 
			 2004 31 34 
			 2005 25 40 
			 2006 30 43 
			 2007 21 40 
			 2008 26 49 
			 2009 20 26 
			 2010 23 18 
			 2011 41 — 
			 2012(2) 20 — 
			 (1) Based on start date of investigation. (2) To 12 September 2012

Marine Accident Investigation Branch

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the (a) funding and (b) staffing levels were for the Maritime Accident Investigation Branch in each year since 1998.

Stephen Hammond: The funding and staffing levels for the Marine Accident Investigation Branch in each year since 1998 are as follows:
	
		
			  Funding budget (£) Outturn (£) Staffing 
			 1998 967,000 1,579,266 20 
			 1999 1,014,000 1,205,183 23 
			 2000 1,158,400 1,450,562 26 
		
	
	
		
			 2001 1,354,400 1,398,785 27 
			 2002 1,793,000 1,695,000 30 
			 2003 1,981,000 2,033,000 32 
			 2004 2,301,000 2,560,000 34 
			 2005 2,697,000 2,937,000 37 
			 2006 3,216,000 3,368,000 39 
			 2007 3,532,000 3,522,000 39 
			 2008 4,046,000 3,808,000 39 
			 2009 4,172,000 4,009,000 39 
			 2010 4,173,000 3,832,000 39 
			 2011 3,632,000 3,627,000 34 
			 2012 3,629,000 — 33

Motorcycles: Driving Tests

Steven Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how many accidents took place during module one motorcycle tests between the introduction of the test and September 2012; and how many of these involved injuries which required medical attention;
	(2)  how many serious injury accidents there were during module one motorcycle tests between the introduction of the test and September 2012.

Stephen Hammond: Incidents on Module 1 practical motorcycling tests: 24 April 2009 to 10 September 2012.
	
		
			  Number/percentage 
			 Number Module 1 practical tests conducted (1)201,901 
			   
			 Total incidents 750 
			 Percentage of total tests conducted 0.37 
			   
			 RIDDOR reportable incidents 134 
			 Percentage of total tests conducted 0.06 
			   
			 Medical attention or first aid required 73 
			 Percentage of total tests conducted 0.03 
			 (1) Includes an estimate of the tests conducted between 1 and 10 September 2012, based on the number of tests booked. Actual numbers of tests conducted for that period cannot yet be verified. 
		
	
	The Driving Standards Agency does not record incidents using the definition 'serious injury', as used by the Department for Transport for the purposes of Road Safety Statistics. The Agency records incidents occurring during Module 1 tests under three categories: RIDDOR reportable incidents (those reportable to the Health and Safety Executive); incidents requiring either first aid or medical attention; and incidents requiring no or self treatment.

Motorcycles: Driving Tests

Mel Stride: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what progress the learning to ride groups have made as part of the motorcycle test review; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he expects to introduce a fully on-road, single-part motorcycle test.

Stephen Hammond: The Motorcycle Test Review and Learning to Ride are two different projects. The Motorcycle Test Review focuses on proposed revisions to module 1 of the Motorcycle Test. Learning to Ride focuses on ensuring that motorcycling instructors have the appropriate skills and qualifications to deliver effective training.
	As part of Learning to Ride, the Driving Standards Agency continues to discuss with motorcycling stakeholders how to ensure that motorcycling instructors have the appropriate skills and qualifications to deliver effective training. The latest industry proposals are due to be submitted for consideration by the end of October 2012.
	Subject to the findings of the research being undertaken as part of the Motorcycle Test Review, the aim is to introduce a single event test that can be carried out on-road as far as possible, during spring 2014.

Motorcycles: Training

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what safety recommendations the motorcycle Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) group has made in relation to improving CBT.

Stephen Hammond: The Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) Group has made the following safety recommendations in relation to improving CBT:
	align the existing CBT syllabus with the National Rider Training Standard ™;
	restructure the sequence of elements of CBT that must be completed, to enable greater flexibility in the way training is delivered and move towards a more client centred approach;
	consider removal of the entitlement to ride a geared motorcycle if CBT has been completed on an automatic motorcycle;
	align the qualification arrangements for CBT and Direct Access Scheme instructors with those of approved driving instructors;
	successful completion of the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) assessment course to become the only route by which instructors can be certified to deliver CBT;
	enhance the role of approved training bodies in assuring their instructors' training standards.
	DSA continues to work with industry stakeholders to review and develop proposals.

Ports: Channel Islands

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether ports in the Channel Islands are classified as overseas ports.

Stephen Hammond: The Channel Islands are Crown dependencies and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey are responsible for policy in relation to their ports.

Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the meetings his Department has had with the United Road Transport Union to discuss the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005; and when he next plans to meet that organisation.

Stephen Hammond: The Department's records show that since May 2010, the Department has met once with the United Road Transport Union (URTU), on 13 October 2010, to discuss the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005. The Department does not have any plans to meet URTU to discuss these regulations and no request for a meeting has been received.

Rolling Stock: Procurement

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information his Department holds on the sums spent by train operating companies on the purchase of new rolling stock in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The majority of rolling stock purchased over the last 10 years has been bought by the rolling stock leasing companies and the actual price paid is a commercial matter for them. Train operating companies work closely with the leasing companies but any costs incurred by the train operators is commercially confidential; the Department does not hold this information.

Shipping: Channel Islands

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information his Department holds on how many residents of the Channel Islands hold a British Seamen's Card.

Stephen Hammond: The Registry of Shipping and Seamen, part of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, has records of 18 British Seaman's Cards issued in the last 10 years, the validity period of the card, to residents with postcodes in the Channel Islands.

Stansted Airport: Railways

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has recently discussed with Cross Country Trains and Greater Anglia the possibility of introducing a half-hourly service between Cambridge and London Stansted Airport.

Simon Burns: The Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), has not entered into any discussions with either Cross Country Trains or Greater Anglia concerning the prospect of introducing half hourly train services between Cambridge and London Stansted airport.

Stansted Airport: Railways

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to encourage Greater Anglia to improve journey times from Cambridge and London Stansted Airport to London Liverpool Street.

Simon Burns: In the current short Franchise Agreement for Greater Anglia the train operator is required to deliver the timetable that was introduced in December 2011, which included improved journey times to morning peak Cambridge to Liverpool Street services.

Unmanned Air Vehicles: EU Action

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on the proposals in the European Commission working document SWD (2012) 259 final of 4 September 2012 entitled Towards a European strategy for the development of civil applications of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The UK recognises the importance of the emerging Civil Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems sector and the many challenges to be overcome to ensure the safe integration with other aviation traffic. The UK supports this European Commission initiative to develop a clear understanding of the issues and take a harmonised approach to addressing them across Europe and with other global regions through ICAO. The UK is closely engaged, in the various work streams involved in harmonising these requirements.

West Coast Railway Line

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how the West Coast Main Line bid was assessed in relation to deliverability of projected passenger numbers; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Bidders for the InterCity West Coast franchise were required to submit a set of delivery plans and financial and operational models to demonstrate how they would deliver their operational, financial and passenger demand projections for the franchise.
	These plans and models were evaluated by the Department with the support of its technical advisers and we satisfied ourselves on the deliverability of these plans when determining the award of the franchise.
	As my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet (Mrs Villiers), set out in a written ministerial statement to this House on 3 September 2012, Official Report, columns 12-14WS, I will continue to keep the House updated, subject to the constraints of legal or commercial privilege.

TREASURY

Enterprise Zones: Lancashire

Mark Menzies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the potential economic benefits to the Lancashire economy of the Warton enterprise zone.

Sajid Javid: The potential economic benefits of the Lancashire Enterprise Zone proposal, submitted by the Lancashire Local. Enterprise Partnership, were assessed against the same criteria as all other zones. These included the strength of the economic growth strategy, likely value for money and ease of implementation.

Insurance: Travel

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his Department will investigate the potential benefits of making insurance compulsory for people travelling abroad.

Greg Clark: It is for individuals to make an assessment of the risks they face when they travel, and to decide whether to take out insurance and which products are most suitable to them.
	Advice on which risks to consider can be found at:
	http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/staying-safe/travel-insurance

Revenue and Customs

Nick de Bois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many investigations were carried out by HM Revenue and Customs into (a) public limited companies, (b) sole traders and (c) partnerships with a turnover of (i) less than £100,000, (ii) more than £100,000 but less than £500,000, (iii) more than £500,000 but less than £1,000,000, (iv) more than £1,000,000 but less than £5,000,000, (v) more than £5,000,000 but less than £10,000,000 and (vi) more than £10,000,000 per annum in (A) 2007, (B) 2008, (C) 2009, (D) 2010 and (E) 2011.

David Gauke: The information requested is not available in this format. HM Revenue and Customs compliance activity—from policy making, through support and education, to audits and investigations—covers all aspects of compliance behaviour from error through to organised criminal attack.
	HMRC targets its compliance activity based on risk rather than by direct reference to the legal entity or turnover. Therefore, this information could be collated only at disproportionate cost.

Shareholders: Loans

Simon Hughes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on the treatment of shareholder loans for tax purposes; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: A shareholder should not be in receipt of company money in an untaxed form. Where a close company (broadly a company controlled by five or fewer participators (shareholders)) makes a loan to a shareholder or his associates a tax charge is raised on the company of 25% of the amount of the loan. This tax charge can be repaid if the loan is repaid.
	Additionally, an income tax charge will be raised on a shareholder who is also an employee or director where he pays little or no interest on a loan exceeding £5,000. The charge will be on the amount of the difference between the interest paid and what would be chargeable at the official rate.

Taxation: British Nationals Abroad

Alun Cairns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans his Department has to use the registration of an individual overseas voter in its revenue investigations.

David Gauke: HMRC has no specific plans at present to acquire this data. However, exploitation of data is one of the key tools used by HMRC to inform its compliance and education based activities. HMRC keep under regular review the datasets which they already acquire and the costs, benefits, priorities and opportunities surrounding the acquisition of further data sets.

Taxation: British Nationals Abroad

Alun Cairns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what use his Department makes of information on the registration of overseas voters.

David Gauke: At present HMRC does not acquire or make use of the information contained in the Overseas Voters List (i.e. UK citizens living abroad who are registered to vote in UK parliamentary and European elections).

Taxation: British Nationals Abroad

Alun Cairns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether HM Revenue and Customs (a) uses and (b) plans to use appearance on the UK electoral register as a criterion for assessing the tax status of Britons living overseas.

David Gauke: One of the range of factors that HMRC can consider when looking at an individual's UK residence status is whether or not they are registered to vote in the UK. However, appearing on the UK electoral register does not on its own mean an individual is UK resident.
	The Government is currently consulting on the details of a Statutory Residence Test which will be introduced from 6 April 2013. Appearance on the UK electoral register is not a factor in the current proposals for the Statutory Residence Test.

Taxation: Business

Gisela Stuart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses HM Revenue and Customs has selected for local compliance with tax and national insurance contributions in each of the last five years.

David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs selects cases for compliance activity based on a number of risk factors rather than by reference to a particular tax or contribution. Therefore it is not possible to provide the information in the format requested. The total number of cases selected by Local Compliance, for a compliance intervention, for each of the last five years are:
	
		
			  Number 
			 2008 194,951 
			 2009 151,273 
			 2010 118,136 
			 2011 103,737 
			 2012 245,546 
		
	
	2011 saw the introduction of a new risk based technology system and so the data shown above for 2012 is not directly comparable with earlier years.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Mobile Phone Coverage: Argyll and Bute

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what plans she has to improve mobile telephone coverage in Argyll and Bute constituency.

Edward Vaizey: The Government recognise the concerns of those who live in areas with little or no mobile phone coverage. Last autumn the Chancellor announced plans to invest up to £150 million in improving mobile phone reception in areas of the UK where homes and businesses have poor or no coverage. We are in process of procuring a supplier for this mobile infrastructure project (MIP).

Tourism

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what priority she gives to tourism policy in England.

Hugh Robertson: Tourism is a key priority for my Department and a major driver for growth, contributing £115 billion annually to the economy. The Government will continue to maximise the tourism benefits of hosting the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. We will invest a further £2 million in domestic tourism marketing, with match funding from industry, to build on the success of the £6 million VisitEngland 20.12 per cent ‘Holiday at Home’ campaign.

Listed Buildings

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what progress she has made on her consultation on improvements to the system of listed building consents; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The consultation on listed building consents closed on 23 August. We received 419 responses to the consultation. I am currently considering these and my Department will publish the Government's response shortly.

Competitive Sport: Disabled People

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what plans she has to increase participation in competitive sport by people with disabilities.

Hugh Robertson: Sport England's Youth Sports Strategy, underpinned by the Community Sports Legacy ‘Places, People, Play’, will deliver a year on year growth in participation in sport by disabled people by 2017.
	In addition, 5,000 young disabled people in 486 schools have already been given the chance to take part in competitive sport as part of the new School Games programme.

Television Reception: Thanet

Laura Sandys: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if she will assess the adequacy of television reception in Thanet.

Edward Vaizey: Indications from a number of coverage investigations have shown that digital terrestrial television coverage in Thanet is in line with post digital switchover predictions, however Ofcom are currently leading an assessment of digital terrestrial television reception in the Thanet area and will report shortly. Satellite and cable television platforms are also available in the Thanet area.

Broadcasting

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to ensure that broadcasters retain and share audience data with producers to enable product involvements.

Edward Vaizey: Broadcasting audience data is collected by the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board, in the case of television, and for radio by the Radio Joint Audience Research. This data is usually made available via a subscription service to the relevant organisation. As such the use and availability of this data is the subject of commercial agreements between the relevant parties and is not a matter for Government.

Sports: Schools

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the effect that the removal of ring-fenced funding for school sport will have on the Sportivate programme.

Hugh Robertson: Sportivate is not a school-sport scheme, but a community sport initiative that is part of Sport England's £135 million Places People Play legacy programme. In its first year, 80,870 young people aged between 14-25 have taken up the chance of six-eight week coaching sessions in a sport of their choice.

Telephones: Fees and Charges

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with Ofcom on whether access charges for numbers beginning (a) 08, (b) 09 and (c) 118 will be subject to a limit when new regulations are brought in by Ofcom in 2014.

Edward Vaizey: The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport has had no discussions with the Office of Communications (Ofcom) on whether access charges for numbers beginning (a) 08, (b) 09 and (c) 118 will be subject to a limit when new regulations are brought in 2014. The matter is an operational issue for the independent regulator.
	Currently, under General Condition 14, Ofcom requires communications providers to publish transparent pricing information for non-geographic calls, including in their advertising and promotional material. Providers must also ensure that those charges are given the same prominence as other call charge information. However, Ofcom recognises that the current system around non-geographic numbers does not work for consumers, with confusion around call pricing and concerns about revenue sharing. Therefore, it is proposing to simplify the number ranges. The main proposals are:
	Freephone: (080 and 116 numbers) to be free from all telephones, landline and mobile;
	Revenue sharing ranges: (084, 087, 09 and 118 numbers—where a portion of the retail charge is passed back to the receiver of the call) are to have a common simplified structure.
	The issue of capping access charges is still subject to the consultation process. Ofcom presented a number of proposals in April 2012, recognising that it was a finely balanced decision but ultimately they proposed that the access charge should not be capped in the first instance, because they considered that allowing it to be subject to competition was more likely to result in prices which reflected consumer preferences. Respondents to the April consultation have provided comments on this point, with some in favour and some against a cap. Ofcom are therefore considering those arguments before making a final decision in December. Given the complexity of the changes there will need to be at least 18 months transition time, which will start when the proposals are finalised by the end of this year.

EDUCATION

Abortion: Health Education

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether the Government monitors the accuracy of information on abortion provided to schoolchildren; if he will contact the campaigning organisation Lovewise to request data on (a) the names of all schools where it has given presentations on abortion and (b) the total number of presentations given; and if he will make a statement.

Elizabeth Truss: We do not monitor the accuracy of information provided to children as part of their sex and relationship education (SRE) since we believe teachers are best placed to make this judgment. The Department does not investigate or request data from organisations providing SRE information unless there is evidence that a school may be in breach of the Secretary of State for Education's SRE guidance, or pupils are receiving an unbalanced and prejudicial sex and relationship education.

Children in Care

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many (a) children and (b) black and mixed-heritage children were looked after by local authorities in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what proportion of (a) all and (b) black and mixed-heritage children looked after by local authorities were (i) adopted and (ii) fostered in each of the last five years.

Edward Timpson: The number of children looked after in England in the last five years is contained in the following table. The table also shows a breakdown of children of black and mixed ethnic origin who were looked after by local authorities in the last five years.
	
		
			 Table 1: Children looked after at 31 March by ethnic origin (1,2) , years ending 31 March 2007 to 2011, coverage: England 
			  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 All children looked after at 31 March(1,2) 59,960 59,360 60,890 64,410 65,520 
			       
		
	
	
		
			 Black and mixed ethnic origin 10,030 9,670 9,650 10,160 10,150 
			       
			 Mixed 5,310 5,220 5,260 5,590 5,620 
			 White and Black Caribbean 2,130 2,100 2,080 2,190 2,150 
			 White and Black African 490 490 490 530 600 
			 White and Asian 850 820 810 910 950 
			 Any other mixed background 1,840 1,810 1,870 1,960 1,920 
			       
			 Black or Black British 4,720 4,450 4,400 4,570 4,520 
			 Caribbean 1,640 1,600 1,570 1,660 1,640 
			 African 2,320 2,140 2,090 2,110 2,050 
			 Any other Black background 750 710 740 800. 840 
			 (1) Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. (2) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placement. Source: SSDA903 
		
	
	The proportion of all children looked after by local authorities who were adopted or in foster placements in each of the last five years is shown in the following table. The table also shows these proportions for children of black or mixed ethnic origin.
	
		
			 Table 2: Children granted an adoption order in year, or in a foster placement at 31 March, as a percentage of all looked after children at 31 March (1,2) , years ending 31 March 2007 to 2011, Coverage: England 
			 Percentage 
			  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 Number of children adopted(3) as a percentage of all looked after children 6 5 5 5 5 
			 Number of children in foster placements as a percentage of all looked after children 70 71 72 73 74 
			 Number of black or mixed ethnicity children(4) adopted(3) as a percentage of all black or mixed ethnicity looked after children 4 5 5 4 4 
			 Number of black or mixed ethnicity children(4) in foster placements as a percentage of all black or mixed ethnicity looked after children 71 71 73 73 74 
			 (1) Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number. (2) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements. (3) Number of children adopted at any time during the year ending 31 March. (4) Mixed, Black or Black British origin, as shown in table 1. Source: SSDA903 
		
	
	These figures are based on data published in tables E1, A1 and A3 of the Statistical First Release: 'Children looked after by Local Authorities in England (including adoption and care leavers)—year ending 31 March 2011'. This is available on the Department's website via the following link.
	http://www.education.gov.uk/researchandstatistics/statistics/statistics-by-topic/childrenandfamilies/a00196857/children-looked-after-by-las-in-england

Children in Care

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department has recently commissioned any research into the quality of care provided to black and mixed-heritage children looked after by local authorities.

Edward Timpson: The Department has not recently commissioned any research into the quality of care provided to black and mixed-heritage children looked after by local authorities. The quality of care for looked after children should be of a consistently high standard, regardless of a child's race or culture. The assessment of each individual child's needs, taking account of the child's own views, will determine the actions in the care plan which must be taken to promote and safeguard the child's welfare. Guidance to local authorities emphasises how important it is for social workers and carers to be aware of the child's race, religion and culture and the ways in which these are reflected in their daily lives. This will include helping the child to preserve and positively promote their identity.

Children in Care

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many submissions have been received via the Tell Tim page on his Department's website;
	(2)  how many policy suggestions received via the Tell Tim page on his Department's website have been (a) considered and (b) developed into departmental policy;
	(3)  how many submissions received via the Tell Tim page on his Department's website have been responded to by (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department.

Edward Timpson: The Tell Tim page was published on the Department's website in March 2011 to enable Ministers and the Department to hear directly from young people in care and those who support them within the care system. The Department for Education has received and considered 251 messages to date.
	Some of the key issues raised and the Department's responses have included:
	financial support for young people in care wanting to go on to further education, where the new 16-19 Bursary provides young people in care and care leavers with a bursary of £1,200;
	the status of foster carers, where the Foster Carers' Charter now sets out clear principles about what foster carers should be able to expect from their fostering service and what is expected from them in return;
	red tape which frustrates foster carers, where the Minister wrote to every local authority to underline the principle that day-to-day decision making about foster children should be delegated to their foster carers wherever possible.
	Ministers and officials cannot respond directly to messages as the Tell Tim page has been designed as a channel for anonymous feedback, given the potentially sensitive or personal nature of messages. However, summaries of the main issues raised along with the Department's responses are broadcast on the Department's You Tube channel.

Children: Day Care

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the average cost to Ofsted is of inspecting an individual child care setting for each category of provider.

Elizabeth Truss: This question is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, has written to the hon. member, and a copy of his response has been placed in the House Libraries.
	Letter from Sir Michael Wilshaw, dated 10 September 2012
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for response.
	The average cost to Ofsted of inspecting an individual childcare setting by category of provider is as follows.
	
		
			  £ 
			 Sole childminder 708 
			 Childminder with assistants 798 
			 Childcare on domestic premises (4-6 childminders) and childcare on non-domestic premises (sessional care) 972 
			 Childcare on domestic premises (more than 6 childminders) and childcare on non-domestic premises (full day care) 1,508 
		
	
	By “inspecting” we mean programmed inspection, post registration inspection and re-inspection of childminder and childcare settings. Childminders care for children on domestic premises—usually their own home. They may work with up to two assistants at any one time. Childcare on domestic premises is where four or more childminders or childminders and assistants work together. Sessional care relates to settings open for part of a day, such as a morning only pre-school or an after-school club for young children. Full day care relates to nurseries and pre-schools offering care for at least the length of a school day (and often longer) to support working parents.
	The average costs relate to providers that are registered on the Early Years Register only, that is, for children below school age. Providers who are on the Childcare Register for children of school age are not subject to regular inspection. We inspect a sample of providers and the cost of those inspections is covered by the annual fee for remaining on that register.
	All costs relate to the most recent full year, 2011-12, and include direct and indirect costs plus overheads. It should be noted that the overall costs in Ofsted have reduced since 2010-11 and are planned to reduce in total by 30% by 2014-15 (the end of the current Comprehensive Spending Review period).
	A copy of this reply has been sent to David Laws MP, Minister of State for Schools, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Children: Health

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will implement the recommendations relevant to his Department contained in the Report of the Children and Young People's Health Outcomes Forum published in July 2012.

Edward Timpson: We are grateful to the Children and Young People’s Health Outcomes Forum for their work in producing this report. We are considering the recommendations relevant to the Department for Education, working with colleagues in the Department of Health. The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), will publish the Government’s response in the autumn.

Children: Visual Impairment

Stephen Gilbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make it his policy to ensure that the statutory requirement on local authorities to establish and maintain registers for sight impaired and severely sight impaired children and young people remains in force.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 7 September 2012
	A local authority is required to keep a register of disabled children within its area, and this will include children who are sight impaired and severely sight impaired. There are no amendments proposed to the legislation under the SEN provisions in the Bill or any other pieces of legislation that will change this requirement.

Education: Children

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of children in each local authority have statements of educational need.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 18 June 2012
	The requested information is published in Table 14A of the Statistical First Release ‘Special Educational Needs in England: January 2012’, available at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s001075/index.shtml

Further Education: Special Educational Needs

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what access to further education will be available to young people with a statement of special educational needs who turn 16 years old before the implementation of the Government's proposed education health and care plans.

Edward Timpson: Young people who leave school with a statement of special educational needs (SEN) have access to a range of further education, in mainstream and specialist settings. Local authorities have a duty to undertake a learning difficulty assessment (LDA) for any 16 to 19-year-old with a statement, moving into further education. The LDA sets out the education the young person will participate in, and the support they will need to do that.
	The Government has this week published draft legislation to reform and improve arrangements for young people with SEN. The provisions include a new single assessment process and Education, Health and Care Plan and will, for the first time, extend rights comparable to those in schools to 16 to 25-year-olds in further education.

GCSE

Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of (a) pupils receiving free school meals, (b) pupils not receiving free school meals and (c) all pupils at the end of key stage 4 did not achieve any (i) G and (ii) C grades or better at GCSE in each year since 1997.

David Laws: Figures for the years 2005/06 to 2010/11 on the number and percentage of pupils who did not achieve a grade G or above or a grade C or above in a GCSE or equivalent qualification at the end of key stage 4 by their free school meal eligibility can be found in the following table. Information on whether or not a pupil is actually receiving free school meals is not available. Figures for the years 2001/02 to 2004/05 can be provided only at a disproportionate cost. Figures for the years prior to 2001/02 are not available because pupil-level data have only been collected in the School Census since the 2001/02 academic year.
	
		
			 Percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4 (1)  not achieving a grade G or above in a GCSE or equivalent qualification by free school meal (FSM) eligibility. Years: 2005/06 to 2010/11 -. Coverage: England, maintained schools (including academies and CTCs) 
			  Pupils eligible for FSM All other pupils (3) All pupils 
			  Number not achieving a grade G or above Percentage not achieving any G level GCSE's or equivalent Number not achieving a grade G or above Percentage not achieving any G level ' GCSE's or equivalent Number not achieving a grade G or above Percentage not achieving any G level GCSE's or equivalent 
			 2005/06 6,538 8.4 14,154 2.7 20,692 3.5 
			 2006/07 5,598 7.3 12,799 2.4 18,397 3.1 
			 2007/08 4,403 5.9 10,407 2.0 14,810 2.5 
			 2008/09 3,646 4.9 8,082 1.6 11,728 2.0 
			 2009/10 3,023 3.9 6,542 1.3 9,565 1.7 
			 2010/11 2,669 3.4 5,410 1.1 8,079 1.4 
			 (1) Number of pupils at the end of key stage 4 in each academic year. (2) Figures for 2005/06 to 2010/11 are based on final data. (3) Includes pupils for whom free school meal eligibility could not be determined. Source: National Pupil Database 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4 (1)  not achieving a grade C or above in a GCSE or equivalent qualification by free school meal (FSM) eligibility. Years: 2005/06 to 2010/11 (2) . Coverage: England, maintained schools (including academies and CTCs) 
			  Pupils eligible for FSM All other pupils (3) All pupils 
			  Number not achieving a grade C or above Percentage not achieving any C level GCSE's or equivalent Number not achieving a grade C or above Percentage not achieving any C level GCSE's or equivalent Number not achieving a grade C or above Percentage not achieving any C level GCSE's or equivalent 
			 2005/06 30,891 39.6 89,795 17.4 120,686 20.3 
			 2006/07 27,313 35.7 80,372 15.3 107,685 17.9 
			 2007/08 21,355 28.6 61,743 11.S 83,098 13.9 
			 2008/09 16,111 21.6 42,655 8.5 58,766 10.2 
			 2009/10 11,901 15.4 29,335 5.9 41,236 7.1 
			 2010/11 9,540 12.1 20,749 4.3 30,289 5.3 
			 (1) Number of pupils at the end of key stage 4 in each academic year. (2) Figures for 2005/06 to 2010/11 are based on final data. (3) Includes pupils for whom free school meal eligibility could not be determined. Source: National Pupil Database

Health Education

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to encourage schools to educate children on the risks of childhood obesity and diabetes.

Elizabeth Truss: The non-statutory framework for personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education includes learning about the importance of health and living healthy lifestyles. Pupils should be taught about the benefits of exercise and healthy eating; how to keep healthy and what influences health; and about the different food choices and the safer choices they can make.
	The framework does not specify particular aspects of health schools should cover. Schools are free to illustrate these concepts through a range of contexts that are relevant to their pupils. An example of this could be the risks of childhood obesity and diabetes.
	We are currently reviewing PSHE education to determine how we can improve the quality of all PSHE teaching and support teachers to teach the subject well. The review also aims to identify the essential core body of knowledge that pupils should be taught.

Parents: Education

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many vouchers have been distributed under the CANparent trial scheme;
	(2)  what discussions his Department had with church groups on the CANparent trial scheme.

Edward Timpson: The CANparent trial was launched by the Prime Minister on 18 May 2012. It aims to remove the stigma associated with attending universal parenting classes and to test how a self-sustaining market in such classes can be established, by offering vouchers that mothers and fathers of children aged 0-5 in three areas can exchange for high quality parenting classes. Vouchers are being distributed by members of the Foundation Years' workforce and by staff at Boots' stores in the three areas. We are currently surveying voucher distributors, of which there are over 300, to gauge activity levels to date. The independent evaluation of the trial will robustly assess the number of parents who have received vouchers. Interviews with a representative sample of eligible mothers and fathers in the trial areas are currently taking place.
	The Department has been in contact with a wide variety of organisations in the course of the development and implementation of the trial, including a number with various faith group affiliations.

Pupils: Bullying

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of Stonewall's School Report 2012 report; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what advice his Department provides to head teachers on dealing with (a) bullying and (b) homophobic bullying;
	(3)  what steps his Department has taken to eliminate homophobic bullying from schools.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government has made tackling all forms of bullying, particularly bullying motivated by prejudice, one of its top priorities. This commitment was highlighted in the Schools White Paper: ‘The Importance of Teaching’.
	A number of the findings in the 2012 report by Stonewall are already reflected in the measures the Government is taking to ensure schools are properly equipped to prevent and tackle all forms of bullying, including through clearer and more concise advice to schools. The new advice summarises the legal obligations and powers schools have to tackle bullying, outlines general principles used in the most successful schools and signposts schools to specialist organisations, including Stonewall.
	Alongside new advice we have given teachers the legal powers that they need to ensure good behaviour and enforce the school rules. Through the Education Act 2011, we have strengthened teachers' powers to search pupils, including a specific power to tackle cyber-bullying, whereby inappropriate images on electronic devices, including mobile phones, can be deleted.
	We have also taken steps to strengthen schools accountability. The new Ofsted inspection arrangements mean that schools are now held more closely to account for the way they tackle bullying. When evaluating the behaviour and safety of pupils at the school (one of the four core areas), inspectors must consider pupils' behaviour towards other pupils and adults. This will include whether pupils are free from bullying and harassment, including bullying based on sexual orientation and all other kinds of prejudice-based bullying.
	The Government believes that, taken together, these measures provide a comprehensive approach to ending not just homophobic bullying, but all bullying in schools.

Schools: Boxing

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools teach boxing.

Edward Timpson: The last PE and sport survey (2009/10) showed that 10% of schools provided boxing for their pupils in 2009/10.

Special Educational Needs

Peter Aldous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of the additional £44 million funding for education places for 16 to 19 year olds in 2012-13 will be allocated to meet the additional needs of learners with special educational needs, learning difficulties and disabilities.

Edward Timpson: In 2012-13 the Demographic Growth Capital Fund of £44 million will provide capital funds to increase the number of places for young people aged 16 to 19, to plan for demographic changes and increasing participation.
	77% (£34.7 million) of the £44 million was awarded to projects to increase local provision to meet the specific needs of young people with disabilities and learning difficulties. 57 projects received funding, one of which is West Suffolk College which will benefit 38 young people at a cost of £319,729.
	The fund was open to all maintained schools, academies, sixth form colleges and colleges of further education (CFEs) with the majority of applications received from CFEs and maintained schools including special school. Projects ranged from those addressing mild learning difficulties to profound and multiple learning needs.

Special Educational Needs

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many families are receiving direct payments for special educational needs provision under the terms of the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012;
	(2)  how much funding is being allocated to each local authority listed in Schedule 2 of the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012 for implementation of the order;
	(3)  when he expects personal budgets for special educational provision to be offered to parents in each of the local authorities listed in Schedule 2 of the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012;
	(4)  what assessment he has made of whether the local authorities listed in Schedule 2 of the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012 are complying with the order; and what steps he plans to take to ensure compliance.

Edward Timpson: The implementation of the SEN (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012 is subject to a discreet evaluation as part of the ongoing wider evaluation of the SEND Green Paper pathfinder programme.
	The evaluation has yet to report any detail on the numbers of direct payments currently being made. However, the most recent quarterly report (Evaluation of the SEND Pathfin der programme: Quarterly report— June 2012, published in August 2012 and available on the Department for Education website) provides information of the scoping phase of the research project. It provides an initial estimate that an average of 12 families per authority (in 21 of the authorities that responded to the scoping study and indicated that they will be making direct payments) will receive direct payments by December 2012.
	The Department expects to publish the first interim evaluation report in October 2012. It will provide an updated picture of the implementation of the order, including initial findings from 15 case study areas.
	Six of the authorities named in the order were part of the Individual Budgets for Disabled Children pilot and, as such, already have experience in providing personal budgets for families with disabled children. In addition, all of the pathfinder authorities have agreed to test the use of personal budgets. Further information on the pathfinders' progress in offering personal budgets will be contained in the interim evaluation report. However, feedback from the pathfinder support team provides anecdotal evidence of established personal budgets in some of the pathfinders and estimates that approximately 400 families will be offered a personal budget during the programme.
	The Department is not conducting any formal standalone assessment of compliance with the order. Such a check would be overly bureaucratic and against the spirit of the testing the pathfinders are undertaking in such a complex area. However, the Department is using the emerging evidence from the formal evaluation, as well as feedback from the pathfinder support team, to ensure that any barriers to implementation are understood.
	The Department will continue to work with partners, including its strategic partner, the Council for Disabled Children, to ensure that pathfinders have the ongoing support they need to test fully the use of direct payments, as set out in the order, as well as personal budgets more generally.
	The SEN Green Paper pathfinder authorities named in the Order will not receive any discreet funding to take part in the pilot. These authorities have been funded to test a broad package of the reforms, including the use of direct payments and more generally the use of personal budgets, and to this end they have been allocated overall pathfinder grant funding of up to:
	
		
			 £ 
			 Local authority 2011-12 2012-13 (1) 
			 Bexley 75,000 150,000 
			 Brighton and Hove 75,000 165,000 
			 Bromley 75,000 165,000 
			 Calderdale 75,000 165,000 
			 Cornwall 75,000 165,000 
			 Darlington 75,000 150,000 
			 Devon 75,000 165,000 
			 East Sussex 75,000 165,000 
			 Gateshead 75,000 150,000 
			 Greenwich 75,000 165,000 
			 Hampshire 75,000 165,000 
			 Hartlepool 75,000 150,000 
			 Hertfordshire 75,000 150,000 
			 Isles of Scilly(2) 0 37,500 
			 Kent 75,000 165,000 
			 Leicester City 75,000 165,000 
			 Lewisham 75,000 165,000 
			 Manchester 75,000 165,000 
			 Medway 75,000 165,000 
			 Northamptonshire 75,000 165,000 
			 North Yorkshire 75,000 150,000 
			 Nottinghamshire 75,000 150,000 
			 Oldham 75,000 150,000 
			 Solihull 75,000 150,000 
			 Southampton 75,000 165,000 
			 Surrey 75,000 165,000 
			 Rochdale 75,000 150,000 
			 Trafford 75,000 165,000 
			 West Sussex 75,000 165,000 
			 Wigan 75,000 150,000 
			 Wiltshire 75,000 150,000 
			 (1) 18 pathfinders were successful in securing an uplift to their funding in their 2012-13 funding. (2) The Isles of Scilly originally received a joint grant allocation with Cornwall but were awarded, following representations to the Minister of State for Children and Families, a discrete grant in 2012-13. 
		
	
	Five of the authorities named in the order (Coventry, Derbyshire, Essex, Gloucestershire and Newcastle) were part of the Individual Budgets for Disabled Children Pilot but are not part of the pathfinder programme. To build on their expertise and ensure that learning from the pilot scheme is maximised, each will receive grant funding of up to £100,000 in 2012-13 to undertake the pilot. The sixth individual budget pilot authority (Gateshead) is now a Green Paper pathfinder programme and was funded as part of that programme (see table).

Special Educational Needs

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department has provided to Wiltshire County Council on the implementation of its responsibilities under the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012.

Edward Timpson: Wiltshire county council is a member of the Department's personal budgets' action learning network (ALN) for pathfinders. As such, it has received information from officials at the Department on the content of the Order at ALN events as well as tailored support from Department's dedicated pathfinder support team. The authority has also received direct written advice from the Department on the implementation of the scheme.

Special Educational Needs

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what representations he has received from (a) parents and carers and (b) hon. Members and councillors in affected local authority areas on the implementation of the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012;
	(2)  whether his Department has agreed that any local authority listed in Schedule 2 of the Special Educational Needs (Direct Payments) (Pilot Scheme) Order 2012 need not comply with the Order.

Edward Timpson: The information is as follows:
	(a) The Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) has received one representation from one hon. Member in a local authority area named in the order. In addition, officials at the Department for Education have received representations from one parent in a local authority area named in the order. Both representations sought clarification of the requirements of the pilot scheme in relation to its implementation in the local authority area.
	(b) The Secretary of State and the Department have not received any representations from councillors in local authority area named in the order.
	The Department for Education has not made any agreement for a local authority to not comply with the order.

Special Educational Needs

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much his Department spent on special educational needs in each financial year from 2009-10 to date; and what estimate he has made of such spending in each financial year up to 2014-15.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 10 September 2012
	Spend on special educational needs also includes support to disabled children, young people and their families. Figures for the financial years 2009 to 2011 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ billion 
			 2009-10 5.37 
			 2010-11 5.79 
			 2011-12 5.77 
		
	
	Estimated spending for 2012-13 by local authorities is due to be published later this month. Our plans to reform provision for children and young people with SEN have just been published and will be scrutinised by the Select Committee on Education. The Department has an annual budgeting process which plans and sets the budget for the forthcoming year.

Staff

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many people are employed in his Department; and how many people were employed by his Department on 5 May 2010.

Elizabeth Truss: Headcount figures are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Date Headcount Full Time Equivalent 
			 30 April 2010 2,646 2,526.8 
			 31 August 2012 2,690 2,575.0 
		
	
	The August 2012 headcount is slightly higher when compared with 2010. This is the result of staff with a legal right transferring into the Department from a closing non departmental public body (NDPB), Since May 2010 the total headcount for the Department and its NDPBs has reduced by 26% or 1,902 full time equivalents.

Teachers: Disciplinary Proceedings

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers were prohibited from teaching by the General Teaching Council for England due to professional incompetence in 2011-12.

David Laws: In the year 2011/12 six cases relating to serious professional incompetence were considered at a hearing. One resulted in a prohibition order being imposed, four resulted in conditional registration orders and one resulted in no finding of serious professional incompetence.
	The General Teaching Council for England (GTCE) was abolished on 1 April 2012 and responsibility for regulating the teaching profession moved to the Teaching Agency. Under the old arrangements, the GTCE was responsible for determining issues involving teacher misconduct and teacher competence. The Teaching Agency no longer considers issues of incompetence in its capacity as the national regulator. Competence issues are most effectively dealt with at a local level; employers being in the best position to make judgments about competence. From 1 September 2012 new, streamlined arrangements for managing teacher performance will be introduced in order to give head teachers the freedom and authority they need to tackle competence issues in their schools. We trust professionals to tackle issues of competence and conduct effectively.

Teachers: Disciplinary Proceedings

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers were referred to the General Teaching Council for England for professional incompetence in the last 10 years.

David Laws: Figures are available from 1 April 2002 to 31 December 2011. Between these dates, 219 teachers were referred to the General Teaching Council for England for serious professional incompetence.

Teachers: Disciplinary Proceedings

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers referred to the General Teaching Council for England for professional incompetence in the last year for which figures are available have been cleared of wrongdoing.

David Laws: During the year 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012, the General Teaching Council for England considered six cases of serious professional incompetence at a formal hearing. Of these, one case resulted in the Committee making a finding of no serious professional incompetence.

Teachers: Pay

Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the average pay rise for full-time classroom teachers was in (a) academies and (b) maintained schools in each of the last three years.

David Laws: The average pay increase of the 289,000 full-time regular qualified teachers who remained in service in a local authority maintained school in England between March 2009 and March 2010 was £2,100.
	There are a number of reasons why the pay of teachers changes during the year including pay awards, pay progression increments and awards of additional allowances. Pay can indeed go down from one year to the next as well. Concentrating solely on those who saw a rise in pay, the average increase was £2,300. There was a 2.3% pay award on 1 September 2009 and this is the most robust indicator of the overall average ‘pay-rise’ during the period.
	No similar figures are available for academies. These figures are provisional. The source of the information is the Database of Teacher Records.
	No figures are yet available for 2010 to 2011 or 2011 to 2012.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he has taken to put into practice the recommendations of the National Audit Office's review of Central Government's implementation of the National Compact published in January 2012.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 7 September 2012
	The voluntary and community sector (VCS) has an important role in the development and delivery of services for children, young people and families. The Department for Education funds a number of VCS organisations and is supportive of the National Compact and its principles. In light of the National Audit Office's report, the Department developed an action plan in spring 2012, which is aimed at strengthening approaches to effective partnership working with VCS organisations. This has included taking forward action to incorporate the Compact into the Department's procurement guidance, delivering training to procurement staff and awareness sessions to policy makers and other staff, and adopting Compact best practice in the award of grants and contracts to VCS organisations.
	The Department for Education also funds five Strategic Partners to ensure effective engagement with the VCS sector in policy development and to build capacity in the sector to deliver key services of national significance. Through the close working with strategic partners, the Department will continue to track and review its performance in adhering to the Compact.

Travel

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many journeys (a) he and (b) officials in his Department made by (i) train, (ii) coach and (iii) Government car in an official capacity in each of the last 12 months.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 3 July 2012
	The number of journeys made by the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), by train and Government car in an official capacity is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Table 1 
			  Train Government Car 
			 April 2011 1 7 
			 May 2011 1 19 
			 June 2011 1 16 
			 July 2011 3 15 
			 August 2011 0 10 
			 September 2011 6 16 
			 October 2011 0 16 
			 November 2011 6 21 
			 December 2011 1 13 
			    
			 January 2012 7 24 
			 February 2012 2 18 
			 March 2012 1 18 
			 April 2012 8 9 
			 May 2012 (1)— 0 
			 June 2012 (1)— (1)— 
			 July 2012 (1)— (1)— 
			 August 2012 (1)— (1)— 
		
	
	The number of journey bookings made by officials in his Department by train and Government car in an official capacity is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Table 2 
			  Train Government Car 
			 April 2011 3,564 24 
			 May 2011 4,091 39 
			 June 2011 4,443 56 
			 July 2011 3,847 39 
			 August 2011 2,926 4 
			 September 2011 4,969 55 
			 October 2011 4,596 49 
			 November 2011 5,375 66 
			 December 2011 3,086 33 
			    
			 January 2012 5,923 46 
			 February 2012 5,486 56 
			 March 2012 5,336 65 
			 April 2012 5,402 42 
			 May 2012 (1)— 45 
			 June 2012 (1)— (1)— 
			 July 2012 (1)— (1)— 
			 August 2012 (1)— (1)— 
			 (1) Additional data cannot be supplied within the time constrains for the updated PQ on 12 September 2012 
		
	
	The Secretary of State for Education and officials in his Department have not used coach travel for official business.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to answer questions 107269, 107270, 107141, 107066, 107062 and 107061, tabled on 10 May 2012 for answer on 14 May 2012.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 28 June 2012
	Responses were issued to the hon. Member's questions as follows:
	PQ 107269—4 July 2012, Official Report, column 699W
	PQ 107270—4 July 2012, Official Report, column 699W
	PQ 107141—4 July 2012, Official Report, column 699W
	PQ 107062—9 July 2012, Official Report, columns 43-44W
	PQ 107061—9 July 2012, Official Report, columns 43-44W and
	PQ 107066—3 September 2012, Official Report, column 106W.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Military Aid

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department takes to ensure co-ordination with the Ministry of Defence on training on humanitarian airdrop or relief operations.

Alan Duncan: DFID and Ministry of Defence (MOD) co-operate closely on international humanitarian relief. For example, Royal Air Force Chinook helicopters assisted in delivering humanitarian supplies in Pakistan after the earthquake in 2005 and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship Largs Bay assisted in Haiti in 2010. DFID has a memorandum of understanding with the MOD in order to ensure efficient and effective co-operation and employment of assets if the need is identified. We work together in line with internationally agreed humanitarian guidelines.

Overseas Aid

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether it remains her policy to support the hon. Member for Preston's private Members' Bill to enshrine in law that the Government should spend 0.7% of gross national income on official development assistance.

Justine Greening: The previous Minister of State for International Development my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell) made clear on 13 July 2012 that the coalition Government supported the hon. Member for Preston’s private Member's Bill. That position has not changed.

Overseas Aid

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether it remains her policy to support enshrining in law a requirement that the Government should spend 0.7% of gross national income on official development assistance.

Justine Greening: Yes. A commitment to enshrine 0.7% in law was set out in the Coalition programme for government. A Bill has been drafted and, as the Prime Minister has said on several occasions, we will legislate when parliamentary time allows.

Overseas Aid

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether it remains her policy to spend 0.7% of gross national income on official development assistance by 2013.

Justine Greening: Yes. This is the first UK government to set out (in the 2010 spending review) clear plans to invest 0.7% of gross national income on official development assistance from 2013. This was reconfirmed in the recent Budget and the Humble Address.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Children: Maintenance

Alec Shelbrooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of the cost of calling the Child Support Agency on low-income households.

Steve Webb: It is not possible to directly link the cost of telephony calls to low-income households within the cost limits which apply to answering this question. Information has instead been given separately on the estimated cost of calls and proportion of low income households.
	In the month of July 2012, the average call length from landlines was nine minutes with the average call length from mobiles approximately eight minutes. The average call cost based on these call durations is 30p from a landline and £1.50 from a mobile. Costs vary widely between networks, plans and the time of day that the call was made as well as connection charges. The mean number of calls per customer per year is two. This means the total average cost of calls from a landline would be approximately 60p per year with calls from a mobile telephone totalling £3.00 per year.
	It is estimated that 48% of parents with care have a pre-maintenance income of under £10,000 per year (gross) with 38% of non-resident parents having a similar income.

Employment Schemes: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2012, Official Report, column 865W, on employment schemes: young people, when he expects to announce whether the formal review of the Youth Contract's progress will include information on the number of wage subsidies used by each individual Work programme prime contractor.

Mark Hoban: The Youth Contract, including wage incentives, went live on April 2012. From this point any young person attached to the Work programme could be placed into work with a wage incentive being offered to the employer. In most cases wage incentives are paid after a young person has been in work continuously for 26 weeks.
	Following the collection and quality assurance of this data, I expect the first set of Official Statistics on the wage incentive to be available from early 2013. Decisions on the precise format of the Official Statistics will be taken nearer the time and will be influenced by the quality of available data. The Department is working to guidelines set by the UK Statistics Authority to ensure we publish statistics that meet high quality standards at the earliest opportunity.

Housing Benefit

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 6 February 2012, Official Report, column 110W, on housing benefit, how much housing benefit by (a) value and (b) percentage was paid to tenants in each Government office region in (i) social housing, (ii) private landlords and (iii) other forms of tenure in each of the last five years.

Steve Webb: Details of past housing benefit expenditure in each Government office region is published and available at the following link. There are separate tables for each year.
	http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/h_tables_budget_2012_300812.xls
	The total amount of housing benefit paid to tenants in social housing, consistent with the previous answer, comprises Rent Rebate (column I) and Registered Social Landlord Rent Allowance (column K), less temporary accommodation expenditure (column T).
	Temporary accommodation expenditure (column T) is counted as "other forms of tenure" in the previous answer, although this will cover a mix of social and different types of private accommodation.
	Figures in the tables include that element of housing benefit funded by local authorities, except tables suffixed "DWP subs", which relate only to expenditure reimbursed by DWP.
	Figures may have changed since the previous answer due to more recent information becoming available.

Housing Benefit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what consideration he has given to increasing the social housing underoccupancy penalty in housing benefit in the event that the savings projected in the impact assessment are not realised.

Steve Webb: We currently have no plans to change the percentage reduction rates for under-occupancy in the social rented sector. As with all changes, we will monitor the impact of this measure to see whether it is meeting its policy objectives.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will rank all English local authorities by the percentage change in the number of (a) all households receiving housing benefit and (b) working households receiving housing benefit.

Steve Webb: The information has been placed in the Library.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what proportion of new housing benefit claimants in each local authority area were in employment in (a) April 2010 and (b) May 2012;
	(2)  what the percentage change was in the number of claims for housing benefit amongst people in employment in each local authority area between (a) April 2008 and April 2010 and (b) April 2010 and April 2012.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not collated centrally and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
	Information on the number of housing benefit claims by local authority is available in the Department for Work and Pensions statistics publication First Release for Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Speed of Processing. This is available in the Library.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the gross expenditure was in real terms on housing benefit for (a) all working age claimants and (b) working age claimants in employment in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12.

Steve Webb: The information is in the following table:
	
		
			 Housing benefit expenditure 
			 £ million (2012-13 prices) 
			  2010-11 2011-12 
			 Working age claimants 16,263 16,968 
			 Working age claimants in employment 3,363 3,975 
			 Notes: The breakdown of HB expenditure into groups (a) and (b) is estimated based on a combination of statistical data and local authority subsidy returns. These estimates are consistent with the latest published expenditure outturn available at: http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/h_tables_budget_2012_300812.xls

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the gross expenditure in real terms on housing benefit for (a) all working age claimants and (b) working age claimants in employment in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.

Steve Webb: Available information is in the following table:
	
		
			 Forecast housing benefit expenditure 
			 £ million (2012-13 prices) 
			  Working age claimants 
			 2012-13 16,828 
			 2013-14 15,781 
			 2014-15 15,487 
			 Notes: 1. These estimates are consistent with the latest published expenditure forecasts at: http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/budget_2012_300712.xls 2. Forecasts for claimants in employment are not produced. The published forecasts provide a breakdown by claimant group: most claimants in employment appear in the ‘Housing Benefit only’ category, although this also includes some other claimants who are not receiving a DWP benefit, and claimants in employment may also appear in other categories. Source: Budget 2012 forecasts

Housing Benefit: Haringey

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of housing benefit claimants in the London Borough of Haringey were in work in each year since 2001.

Steve Webb: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following table.
	
		
			 Housing benefit (HB) recipients, non-passported and in employment in the London borough of Haringey: November 2008 to May 2012 
			  All HB recipients All non-passported All HB non-passported in employment All HB non-passported, in employment as a proportion of all HB recipients (percentage) 
			 November 2008 32,120 10,610 6,510 20.3 
			 May 2009 32,530 10,850 6,570 20.2 
			 May 2010 35,050 12,560 8,180 23.3 
			 May 2011 36,280 14,160 9,830 27.1 
			 May 2012 37,020 14,970 10,490 28.3 
			 Notes: 1. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple. 2. Recipients are as at second Thursday of the month. 3. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data is available monthly from November 2008 and May 2012 is the most recent available. 4. This data refers to people receiving Housing Benefit not in receipt of a passported benefit and are recorded as being in employment if their local authority has recorded employment income from either the main claimant, or partner of claimant (if applicable), in calculating the housing benefit award. People receiving passported benefits who are working part-time cannot be identified and are therefore not included in this analysis. 5. Caseload figures are rounded to 10, percentages to one decimal place. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE)

Housing Benefit: South East

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of (a) housing benefit and (b) local housing allowance claimants in (i) Brighton and Hove local authority area and (ii) the South East of England have been in work in each year since 2001.

Steve Webb: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following tables.
	
		
			 Housing benefit (HB) recipients, non-passported and in employment and local housing allowance (LHA) recipients, non-passported in employment, November 2008 to May 2012 
			  All HB caseload All non-passported All HB non-passported in employment All HB non-passported, in employment as a proportion of all HB recipients (percentage) 
			 November 2008     
			 Great Britain 4,171,940 1,218,840 430,160 10.3 
			 South East region 439,430 158,350 65,300 14.9 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 25,240 8,700 4,360 17.3 
			      
			 May 2009     
			 Great Britain 4,412,990 1,357,610 485,610 11.0 
			 South East region 470,650 171,400 73,720 15.7 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 26,640 9,180 4,460 16.8 
			      
			 May 2010     
			 Great Britain 4,751,530 1,490,530 650,550 13.7 
			 South East region 512,320 192,760 92,880 18.1 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 28,000 9,940 5,270 18.8 
			      
			 May 2011     
			 Great Britain 4,879,180 1,638,770 803,070 16.5 
			 South East region 527,520 211,160 111,700 21.2 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 28,350 10,920 6,380 22.5 
			      
			 May 2012     
			 Great Britain 5,031,740 1,753,430 903,440 18.0 
			 South East region 544,690 224,350 123,950 22.8 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 28,760 11,300 6,900 23.8 
		
	
	
		
			  All LHA caseload All LHA non-passported in employment All LHA non-passported, in employment as a proportion of all LHA recipients (percentage) 
			 November 2008    
			 Great Britain 380,150 91,510 24.1 
			 South East region 49,970 15,820 31.7 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 10,270 3,260 31.7 
			     
			 May 2009    
			 Great Britain 640,090 149,040 23.3 
			 South East region 84,830 25,240 29.7 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 11,350 3,380 29.8 
			     
			 May 2010    
			 Great Britain 998,650 267,040 26.7 
			 South East region 127,070 41,270 32.5 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 12,370 4,020 32.5 
			     
			 May 2011    
			 Great Britain 1,186,070 362,700 30.6 
			 South East region 148,650 53,880 36.2 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 12,890 4,790 37.2 
			     
			 May 2012    
			 Great Britain 1,330,310 421,330 31.7 
			 South East region 164,710 61,750 37.5 
			 Brighton and Hove local authority 13,000 5,000 38.4 
			 Notes: 1. Local Housing Allowance was introduced in the deregulated private sector from April 2008 and the first available data is for November 2008. 2. Caseload figures are rounded to 10, percentages to one decimal place. Totals may not sum due to rounding. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE): 2008 onwards

Housing Benefit: South East

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether any of the (a) claimants of and (b) landlords interviewed for the recently-published research on the effect of the (i) housing benefit and (ii) local housing allowance measures in Monitoring the impact of changes to the local housing allowance system of housing benefit: Summary of early findings Department of Work and Pensions (June 2012) were from (A) Brighton and Hove and (B) the South East of England.

Steve Webb: The Department published a report of early findings on 14 June and a copy of the report has been lodged in the House Library.
	The research was conducted by a consortium of academics and research organisations led by Ian Cole, professor of housing studies at Sheffield Hallam university and is based on the results of a face to face survey with 100 LHA claimants and 80 landlords in each of 19 local authorities selected as case study areas.
	Three local authorities in the South East, Portsmouth, Tendring and Thanet formed part of the 19 local authority case study areas.
	The Department for Communities and Local Government, the Scottish Government and Welsh Assembly Government are working in close partnership with the DWP and contributing to the costs of the review.

Housing Benefit: Wales

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of housing benefit claimants in Wales are in employment.

Steve Webb: The available information is provided in the following table:
	
		
			 Housing benefit (HB) recipients, non-passported and in employment—Wales—May 2012 
			 Wales Number /percentage 
			 All HB recipients 251,310 
			 All non-passported 74,340 
			 Non-passported of which are in employment 33,940 
			   
			 Non-passported, in employment as a proportion of all HB recipients (percentage) 13.5 
			 Notes: 1. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple. 2. Recipients are as at second Thursday of the month. 3. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data is available monthly from November 2008 and May 2012 is the most recent available. 
		
	
	
		
			 4. This data refers to people receiving Housing Benefit not in receipt of a passported benefit and are recorded as being in employment if their local authority has recorded employment income from either the main claimant, or partner of claimant (if applicable), in calculating the housing benefit award. People receiving passported benefits who are working part-time cannot be identified and are therefore not included in this analysis. 5. Case load is rounded to the nearest 10. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE)

Independent Living Fund

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much funding his Department has allocated for consultation with Independent Living Fund recipients on the future of the fund; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The consultation budget set aside by the Independent Living Fund is £100,000. This does not include staff time costs.

Independent Living Fund

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department is taking to consult independent living fund recipients on the future of the fund; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The Department is running, in conjunction with the ILF, 14 consultation events for users in locations across the UK. The ILF wrote to every user of the fund at the launch of the consultation to inform them of it, advise them how to respond, inform them how to get accessible documents and tell them how to obtain support to respond to the consultation if they were not able to submit a response through the normal channels. As of 7 September the ILF had issued a further 5,237 reminders to users about the consultation through a variety of mediums.

Licensing

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what permits and licences his Department and its public bodies issue to businesses.

Mark Hoban: DWP issues two types of licences. One type is a licence to occupy buildings where DWP occupies a building and there is surplus space. The other is a licence to use intellectual property. DWP does not issue permits.
	DWP n on- d epartmental  p ublic  b odies
	Remploy Ltd issues a variety of licences and/or permits in the course of its normal business, to include (but not limited to) those for:
	(i) the occupation of property or area owned by Remploy to small businesses, partners and/or charities;
	(ii) the use of machinery and equipment belonging to Remploy;
	(iii) the use of Remploy intellectual property (for example: copyright, trademarks, designs, patents); and
	(iv) other permissions or licences required under commercial or other contractual terms in the normal course of business.
	The Health and Safety Executive has issued licences and permits as described in the following appendix.
	No other DWP non-departmental public body has issued permits or licences to businesses.
	
		
			 Licence/permit title Licence or permit Brief description (if not obvious from title) 
			 Nuclear site licence Licence Section 1(1) of the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 prohibits any person installing or operating nuclear facilities without a nuclear site licence. The issuing of a licence makes the licensee responsible for all nuclear safety matters on the licensed nuclear site. ONR grants nuclear site licences on behalf of HSE. The nuclear site licence is a legal document, issued for the full life of the facility. 
			 Licences under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 Licence These Regulations require work with most asbestos-containing materials to be carried out by a holder of a licence granted by HSE. All work with sprayed asbestos coatings, asbestos insulation or asbestos lagging and most work with asbestos insulation board requires a licence because of the hazardous nature of these high risk materials. 
			 Licensing sites to store or manufacture explosives Licence — 
			 Acetylene Import Licence Licence — 
			 Licensing harbours and harbour areas to handle explosives Licence — 
			 Licensing the mixing of Ammonium Nitrate Fuel Oil explosives (ANFO) Licence — 
			 Intellectual Property Licences Licence Licences users to use difference computer software developed by HSL. 
			 The Plant Protection Products (Sustainable Use) Regulations 2012 Permit for aerial application of pesticides Permit Permit granted to aerial applicators of pesticides before application can take place. 
			 Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 Permit for trial purposes of a plant protection product Permit A permit for release into the environment of an unauthorised plant protection product or involving unauthorised use of a plant protection product, for research and development purposes. 
			 Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 Parallel trade permit for a plant protection product Permit A permit of marketing and use of a parallel trade plant protection product.

Personal Independence Payment

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what safeguards he has put in place to ensure that deaf people receive adequate financial support through the personal independence payment system; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The personal independence payment assessment will not consider what impairments an individual has, labelling them simply on this basis. It is being designed to consider their personal circumstances, and will consider the impact their impairment has on their everyday life.
	The assessment criteria will take account of physical, sensory, mental, intellectual and cognitive impairments. Entitlement will depend on individuals being determined as having limited or severely limited ability to carry out certain activities and whether someone's ability is limited in this way will depend on the outcome of their assessment.
	During our recent consultation we engaged with organisations representing deaf individuals, and I can assure you that we are considering all of their comments very carefully as we evaluate what further improvements need to be made to the assessment criteria.

Social Security: Wales

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to extend the European Social Funding provisions for support for families with multiple problems to Wales.

Mark Hoban: The Department for Work and Pensions manages the England European Social Fund programme, which is the source of funds for the support for families with multiple problems. As the ESF programme covers England only, so does this support. The Welsh Assembly Government has responsibility for a separate European Social Fund programme in Wales, and they decide what priorities to spend it on.

State Retirement Pensions

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the cost of increasing the 25 pence increase to the state pension for people over the age of 80 to £10 a week if (a) the payment was tax-free and not taken into account for income-related benefits, (b) it was taxable but not taken into account for income-related benefits and (c) it was taxable and counted as income for the purposes of income-related benefits.

Steve Webb: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave on 17 May 2012, Official Report, column 295W.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department has taken to implement the recommendations of the National Audit Office report, Central Government's implementation of the national Compact.

Mark Hoban: The Department for Work and Pensions is developing plans to undertake regular stocktakes of its implementation of the Compact and has already demonstrated its commitment to abide by the principles of the Compact in its dealings with Civil Society organisations by publishing relevant information on:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/corporate-publications/compact.shtml
	This also provides contact details for DWP's Civil Society Liaison Officer, who can provide more information upon request.
	In public consultation exercises, DWP endeavours to follow the Government Code of Practice on Consultation and if unable, provides a clear explanation as to why that was so. Also, in contracting for services to be delivered on its behalf, DWP continues to comply with its own ‘Commissioning Strategy’ and is implementing ‘The Merlin Standard’ to champion positive behaviours and relationships in the delivery of provision, including with Civil Society organisations.

Work Capability Assessment

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 5 September 2012, Official Report, columns 361-2W, on work capability assessment, whether Atos Healthcare professionals are routinely advised of the levels of the parameters which would trigger an audit of their work; what steps are taken to indicate that these parameters are not to be treated as targets; and whether the parameters are adjusted to account for the outcomes of appeal decisions.

Mark Hoban: Atos Healthcare professionals are routinely audited. They are not routinely made aware of the parameters that would trigger auditing.
	Atos Healthcare are not routinely informed of the outcome of individual appeals.